Don’t scapegoat me, change your failed policies, Haqqani tells Aziz

• Sartaj Aziz says Pakistan’s former ambassador to US ‘lobbying against own country’; says govt is making ‘successful efforts’ against India’s NSG bid
• Haqqani says past support for Jihadis and false excuses at every turn have finally caught up with Pakistan

Pakistan’s former ambassador to the United States Husain Haqqani has said that Pakistani officials should take responsibility for failed policies and their poor presentation abroad instead of looking for scapegoats to divert attention from criticism at home.

Haqqani’s statement came as Adviser to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz, without naming Husain Haqqani, had said in the National Assembly earlier in the day that a former Pakistani ambassador to the US is ‘lobbying against his own country’ and ‘creating hurdles for the government’.

“A former Pakistani ambassador is working against his own country in the US,” Aziz said, adding that Pakistan’s diplomatic mission in the US is facing challenges due to the former ambassador’s campaign.

“This person is trying to reverse all our diplomatic efforts in boosting the bilateral ties between Pakistan and the United States,” Aziz said.

Haqqani rejected the claims of the PM’s adviser saying he knew Aziz was talking about him because another government minister had attacked Haqqani by name with similar claims.

“I am now a scholar in the US, not a lobbyist,” Haqqani said, adding, “If my opinion as a scholar carries so much weight that the US policy is being affected by it then the Pakistan Foreign Ministry should try to influence my opinion rather than treating me like a pariah and making false allegations against me in the Pakistani media.”

The PM’s adviser had said without naming Haqqani, “The Foreign Office has serious reservation on the activities of the said person in the US.”

‘DON’T BLAME IT ON ME, YOU SCREWED THE POOCH ALL ON YOUR OWN’:

Haqqani said that Pakistan’s difficulties in the US were the result of years of supporting Jihadis and making excuses that are having less and less effect on Americans. Moreover, Pakistan’s dependence on the US aid makes it susceptible to changes in the US national mood and attitude.

He said, “I did not make the AQ Khan network, or support the Taliban as they killed US soldiers in Afghanistan or allow UN designated terrorist groups to function openly, so there is no point in blaming me for these policy failures. Neither I nor any other former ambassador was responsible for the OBL fiasco.”

“I have written three scholarly books on Pakistan published internationally critiquing policies that I believe damage Pakistan’s interests,” Haqqani asserted. “Others, including Sartaj Aziz, are welcome to write books that disprove my arguments but to say that my opinions are creating hurdles in the conduct of their failed policies is disingenuous at best.”

Haqqani said he is not engaged in lobbying and would never lobby “against what I consider to be the interests of Pakistan”. He insisted, however, that he is entitled to having a different opinion about what Pakistan’s interest is than the entrenched Pakistani establishment and if that troubles some people, so be it.

Haqqani advised the adviser in-charge of the Pakistan Foreign Office to understand that making noise in Islamabad about a scholar in Washington will not change things in Washington. “I have great respect for Sartaj Aziz as a development economist and would like for him to extend the same courtesy to me as a Professor of International Relations,” he added.

‘MAKING SUCCESSFUL EFFORTS’ AGAINST INDIA’S NSG BID:

Speaking on the floor of the National Assembly, Aziz also said that Pakistan is ‘making successful efforts’ against India’s Nuclear Suppliers Group membership.

The adviser’s remarks come just days after Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj said India is “not opposed” to Pakistan’s entry into the NSG.

Winding up a discussion on demands for grants, the advisor rejected the impression that Pakistan is being isolated and said Pakistan has to prioritise foreign policy on the basis of new alignments taking place in the world.

Aziz said Pakistan is pursuing a balanced policy based on non-interference and protection of national interests and nuclear assets.

IT’S GONNA BE JUST FINE, SARTAJ ASSURES:

Aziz said the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), CASA-1000, and the Turkmenistan Afghanistan Pakistan India (TAPI) and Iran-Pakistan (IP) gas pipeline projects are concrete achievements that will help increase regional connectivity.

He also claimed that Pakistan’s political role will be enhanced through membership of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

He highlighted Pakistan’s ‘historic and religious’ relations with Muslim countries, saying that ties with Iran are “moving in the right direction”, and that after the lifting of sanctions against the Republic, Pak-Iran relations will be strengthened.

Pakistan is pursuing a ‘no-favourites’ policy regarding Afghanistan and making efforts to establish peace in the country by means of the Quadrilateral Coordination Group. Work is in progress with respect to border management along the Pak-Afghan border, Aziz said.

OPPOSITION TRASHES GOVT’S FOREIGN POLICY:

Opposition members, however, criticised the government’s foreign policy, saying that Pakistan is becoming isolated and stressed the need for good relations with the neighbouring countries.

The opposition demanded that foreign policy should be reviewed keeping in mind shifts taking place in the region.

They pointed out that economy should be strengthened to support an independent foreign policy and termed the efforts of the Foreign Office with regard to gaining the NSG membership insufficient.

Those who took part in the discussion included Shaikh Rashid Ahmad, Syed Naveed Qamar, Dr Shireen Mazari, Shaikh Salahuddin, Ayesha Syed, Jamshed Dasti, Mussarat Rafique Mahesar, Imran Khattak, Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui and Shazia Marri.