It would be useful to recall the conditions prevailing in Iraq on the eve of the invasion in March 2003.
Following Iraq’s comprehensive defeat in the first gulf war in 1991, it was placed under stringent UN sanctions. It was debarred from international commerce and proceeds from oil, its sole foreign exchange earner, were allowed, under UN management, for importation of food and medicines only. Two respected UN officials, Von Sponneck and Denis Halliday resigned over the deliberately unjust manner in which this program was managed.
US and Britain had declared Iraq a No Fly Zone necessitating prior permission from these countries even for civilian flights. Iraq’s military aircraft sent to Iran in 1990 were still in latter’s custody. Under Security Council resolution 687 all of Iraq’s offensive military assets had been destroyed by UN inspectors including missiles, long range guns, chemical and bacteriological weapons and their manufacturing capabilities. For several years, a sizeable team of UN inspectors had combed every military location in Iraq neutralising all forbidden items. As for nuclear weapons, not even a trace was detected either of fissile material or its manufacturing components. These findings are available in the reports of the inspection teams headed by Hans Blix, a former IAEA Director General.
By any reckoning, Iraq was at the time the most unsovereign of states.
Putting aside these facts, a case was made before the Security Council to authorise military action for possession of weapons of mass destruction. Unconvinced, the Council refused to act on this request. Yet on March 20, a massive assault was launched against Iraq of which the political outcome was a so called elected government which was promptly recognised by the international community with the UN showing the way.
The motivations behind this clear violation of the UN charter are now well known and, in any case, fall outside the ambit of this article which is simply an attempt to underscore the growing imprint of the Doctrine of Necessity on the world stage; creation of a new order through force followed by its legitimisation by manipulating the United Nations and arm twisting its member states.
Libya offers an interesting variation on this phenomenon. Since March this year, the breakneck developments in that country have flowed from Security Council Resolution 1793. This resolution had a simple mandate, to protect Libyan civilians in and around Benghazi from Qaddafi’s brutality. As a mechanism of this protection, Libya was declared a No Fly Zone and member states were authorised, under notification to the UN Secretary General, to enforce the ban.
Ironically, Resolution 1793 is in direct contravention of the UN Charter which pointedly prohibits the world body from interfering in matters which fall within the domestic jurisdiction of member states. This principle was incorporated in the Charter on the insistence of third world countries at the San Francisco Conference, primarily from Latin America, since most of Asia and Africa was still under colonial rule. The apprehension that the powerful veto wielding nations might use the Council platform to pursue vested agendas in weaker countries was precisely the reason behind this insistence.
Libya had roughly 40 antiquated MIGs which were no match for the highly advanced fighter jets deployed by Britain and France to enforce the No Fly ban. Close to 8000 armed sorties were carried out over Qaddafi strong holds in which dozens of loyalists were killed including civilians. A flying ban is a reactive mechanism to prevent hostile aircraft from using the forbidden air space. It was stretched to carry the battle to the regime’s targets.
Let us, for a moment, close our eyes to all these infractions motivated as these were by higher humanitarian considerations. Yet one question remains: how does it come about that a group of unarmed civilians, hapless, helpless and hunted, within a few months after the adoption of Resolution 1793 were able to overrun the entire country and install a new government in the form of the National Transitional Council? Does any one doubt that this regime would soon be recognised by the international community as the legitimate government of Libya in keeping with the principle that a new order creates its own legitimacy, regardless of the conditions of its birth?
On March 18, a day after the adoption of Resolution 1793, David Cameron, the British Prime Minister, had declared in the House of Commons that “it is not in our interest for this man (Qaddafi) to lead a pariah state on the southern flanks of Europe” True but had “this man” offered favourable exploration rights to British and French oil companies, would this have been his fate?
The three countries discussed in these columns, Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya had one thing in common; severe internal disharmony and disruption caused by long years of gross misrule. The key question now is, that in this imperial project, which one is next?
The writer is Pakistan’s former Ambassador to the United Nations and European Union. He can be contacted at [email protected]
Great article, highlights the reality of the current state of affairs.
analytical and realistic. time for our leadership to wake up to the new realities
Very well written…Amazingly well constructed & collected facts!
the world has changed but the pakistanis have not. they continue to be obsessed with india.
What does this article have to do with India? The writer did not even mention India…
Wake up ranji, the writer respected Ambassador Shaukat Umer did not even mention India in his entire content so where did India butt into it.
obviously hasan naqvi is writing on behalf of his CIA paymasters. in addition to his conscience what else did he give to his masters in washington.
on whose behalf is hasan naqvi acting: CIA or MI6
ridiculous
And what have you done for our country? Take your baseless comments somewhere else and get a life, Loser.
Look at the guys face. Would you even trust him to shine your shoes.?
LOOOOOOOOOL!!! Hilarious! Haaaahaaa
You’ve done a great job embarrassing yourself, keep it up. How convenient of you to hide behind anonymity-why don’t you spew your petty vomit to the writer himself and save some face on public forums. Or better yet, spare us all of your inferiority complex and third-rate commentary.
"hasan naqvi" is obviously very ignorant of the facts. probably just a frustrated and bored twit. dont think the MI6 would hire such idiots.
Guest11 – check your facts as they are publicly available, he retired from diplomatic service in 2005 at age 61 which is the retirement age. You obviously have no idea what you're talking about. Nobody is interested in your ignorant comments anyway.
Shining musharrafs shoes and begging for extensions? Common knowledge! Total sifarishi and baigharat.
You've done a great job embarrassing yourself, keep it up. How convenient of you to hide behind anonymity- why don't you spew your petty vomit to the writer himself and save some face on public forums. Or better yet, spare us all of your inferiority complex and third-rate commentary.
It is obvious that Masud and Hasan Naqvi are one and the same person. Clearly he carries a big grouse against the system, evident from his vicious personal attacks. A lateral entrant who must have been kicked around due to his incompetence. Latty, if you have nothing meaningful to contribute on the subject, then just shut up.
The attacks are from low level jealous officers that hold a grudge against senior officers. These morons are not intelligent enough to comment on the points raised in this article and are taking the opportunity to bash a senior ambassador with a 30 year career in the FO. These cowards don't realize they can be tracked by their IP addresses. What a bunch of idiots!!!!!
the issue is much deeper than the rantings of an incompetent lateral entrant. Amb. Umar in his article had raised extremely pertinent points on how western powers were victimising the muslim countries, to pursue their national interests. At the end of his article he had asked the question: who is next. Todays papers have provided the answer. Admiral Mullen has directly accused Pakistan of instigating the attack against the american embassy in kabul. the implications of this allegation are clear.
the attacks against the author is a blatant attempt to question his credibility and to suppress this debate which has a clearcut bearing on pakistan's sovereignty.in my earlier comment i had urged our leadrs to beware. let me repeat this warning.
Lateral? Isn't the pot calling the kettle black?
Mudslinger – please focus on the pertinent issues the article discusses. Or are you too dumb to understand the article?
Information for guest 11, your comments show your inner self. The language you use for respectable and seasoned senior officers of your FO is a disgrace, that speaks volumes about your upbringing and calibre. How dare you talk about competent and seasoned writers like Ambassabor Shaukat Umer. Shame on you, 1000 times over.
Hasan, you’ve done a great job embarrassing yourself, keep it up. How convenient of you to hide behind anonymity- why don’t you spew your petty vomit to the writer himself and save some face on public forums. Or better yet, spare us all of your inferiority complex and third-rate commentary.
Zafar Hillaly is a great writer, I read his articles with fondness.
I think that after the first couple of commentators, there has been only mudslinging by people who have nothing to say about the article but want to malign the writer. The analysis of Amb. Umer and his apprehensions have been vindicated by Mullen's accusation that ISI was involved in the attack on the US Embassy in Kabul. About the writer's view that Iraq war was illegal, I may say that Kofi Annan, the then Secretary General,UN, also said so. In these dangerous times comments should only be focussed on the issues raised by writers and mudslinging ought to be avoided.
I agree completely with Mansoor Mahmood. There is a coordinated effort to silence the writer who raised critical issues in the article.
i also want to invite the editor of Pakistan Today to have a good look at all the comments and decide if these are becoming of a serious newspaper. no other paper allows such trash on its website..
Mudslinger – please focus on the pertinent issues the article discusses. Or are you too dumb to understand the article?
You've done a great job embarrassing yourself guest 21, keep it up. How convenient of you to hide behind anonymity- why don't you spew your petty vomit to the writer himself and save some face on public forums. Or better yet, spare us all of your inferiority complex and third-rate commentary.
i pay taxes. and i completely agree with all these people here who make a very solid point when they ask why such people are representing us? pakistan is a joke and it is public knowledge that mr shaukat umer used to have close ties with musharraf and used it for his personal gain. his article might put some valid points forth but all that is secondary as the man does not have my respect. hence i fully agree that he should stop writing and not humiliate himself
Fraud Firdos Iqbal: You seem like a bitter man with special dislike for the writer Amb. Umer. Grow up and look around you. I bet you were trampled by the FO your self. You good for nothing idiot. The writer was a Grade 22 Officer who was retired as per the government rules and did not , let me repeat DID NOT ask or get an extention, unlike others including you, Zafar Hillaly and Arshad Sami Khan. God help us to have people like you whose females were mistresses of ruling parties of their times. And who now are jealous of competent and seasoned writers.
hilarious! im gonna share this on my facebook its sooooo funny!
its like saying just because someones chamcha makes a good point we should focus on the point. i am very sorry but i do not respect the man. he was like musharrafs servant. the things people do for money and power in pakistan is shameless. now hes pretending like hes some saint and writing? if altaf hussain stands up tomorrow and makes a point, even if its valid or not, people will laugh. its the same for this guy. he is a joke.
Truth is we pay taxes. Hence we have paid ambassador umar's pay from our hard earned money. It is no secret that he was a musharraf chamcha and used it for personal gain. Hence I do not care if his article is valid or not, it is the person writing it that aggravates me. What is worse is that every one stands back and encourages such people. WAKE UP PAKISTAN!!!!!!!!!
let a brother earn a buck
For the past three hours, me and my partner have been laughing at one of guest's comments above. Why does pakistan not screen ambassors better when hiring them? Every ambassador I have known is a disgrace.
guests amusing comment is: " Shaukat, chorh de yara. Have you forgotten the maid incident? Truth is, you and your types are a blemish on Pakistan and are an embarrassment to civil society here. You were known as Shaukat choora in the F.O and you know it well. You had no izzat at all and everyone knows it. Today, your a dark has-been drunk of a man and I hear Musharraf doesn't even take your calls. "
I have mixed feelings about this. While umer makes valid points in the article, he also lacks the credibility that gets loyal readership. But it is not only umer, most people in our govt are of his breeding. If you dont like him, simply dont read him. As far as the musharraf connection goes, pervaiz is a very smart man who used umer for something personal, and then dumped him. One cant blame amb umer for that! No mudslinging please!
This is hilarious. one group accuses the writer of being a Musharraf chamcha while others have thanked Musharraf for getting rid of him. pl gentemen, it is clear u all are reading from the same script, at least make sure that you write the same things. also pl tell your handlers to spend some money on improving your writing skills.
Yes it must be a Qadiani conspiracy. Also maybe CIA, RAW, MI6. Perhaps Aliens. Or maybe, just maybe, people really feel that baigharat chamcha-types dont have any standing in a civil society. In his defense though, it is most of our beaurocrats, he is not alone in this! Now leave him.alone
pakistan has to wake up to the threat from inside by people who act on orders of foreign masters. anyone who talks the truth has to shut up bec foreigners dont like it..if we say attacks on afghanistan and iraq were good than we are ok. if we say the truth we are bad. this is what pakistan has become.that is why i support imran khan. in least he has courage to tell the truth.
the power of the invisible force in pakistan is unbeleivable. the author committed the terrible mistake of questioning the legality of the military interventions in afghanistan, iraq and libya and all hell has broken loose. all kinds of personal attacks have been made in a crude attempt to shut him up. Ambassador Umar, i hope you will not be cowed by these agents of the invisible force and continue to expose the duplicity that is being practised against the muslims eveywhere.. i have a very strong hunch that this whole smear campaign has been organised by the Qadianis who have no loyalty to this country.
why does america not take these qadianis to their country like the jews,pl obama save us from this evil and send your big planes and take away all your chamchas, this would be a bigger help to pakistan than your f16,
SHQ SUMMED IT UP VERY WELL : While umer makes valid points in the article, he also lacks the credibility that gets loyal readership
IM ALSO LAUGHING THAT WHILE FREEDOM OF SPEECH IS APPLIED AND COMMENTATORS HAVE SAID NOTHING NON-PAKISTANI AND HAVE NOT EVEN MENTIONED AGFHANISTAN OR PAKISTAN: UNEDUCATED PEOPLE HERE BLAME AMERICA AND QADIAANIS. HOW STUPID ARE PEOPLE? THE COMMENTATORS ONLY SPOKE ABOUT SHAUKAR UMER AND NOTHING TO DO WITH COUNTRIES OR HIS POINTS. HE HAS VALID POINTS BUT PEOPLE DON'T LIKE HOW HE WAS A CHAMCHA. ITS VERY SIMPLE. THIS IS WHATS WRONG WITH PAKISTANIS. WE ARE QUICK TO LAY BLAME. CAN EVERY ONE OPEN THEIR NARROW MINDS FOR A SECOND AND FOCUS ON FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND SEE THAT NO ONE HERE SAID ANYTHING ABOUT WARS BEING RIGHT OR WRONG. PEOPLE JUST POINTED OUT FACTS ABOUT THE AUTHOR. NOTHING MORE. NOTHING LESS.
AS FOR PEOPLE READING FROM THE SAME SCRIPT: EVEN AS A CAUSAL READER I CAN GATHER THAT ALL SHAUKAT CRITICIZERS DO NOT THINK ALIKE. YES SOME LOOK DOWN UPON HIM FOR BEING A CHAMCHA , WHILE OTHERS ARE GLAD HIS OWNERS GOT RID OF HIM. VERY SIMPLE!
threat from inside come from qadiani and shia, they are destroying pakistan,imran khan should do something aboui ihai also
U KNOW WHY THEY ARE CALLED "GOVERNMENT SERVANTS?" BECAUSE THEY ARE SERVANTS OF THE GOVERNMENT. THIS MAKES THEM ANSWERABLE TO THE PEOPLE IF THE PEOPLE FEEL THEY ARE LITERALLY ACTING LIKE CHAMCHAS OR IN AN UNDIGNIFIED FASHION. THEIR ACTIONS BELONG TO THE COUNTRY. THEY REPRESENT PAKISTAN. HENCE IT IS REALLY STUPID FOR MR. UMER TO WRITE AN ARTICLE IN A NEWSPAPER AND THEN BE SHOCKED THAT PEOPLE ARE CRITICAL OF HIM. FREEDOM OF SPEECH. IF HE DID NOT WANT TO BE IN THE PUBLIC EYE OR BE ANSWERABLE TO THE PEOPLE HE REPRESENTS THEN HE SHOULD HAVE BECOME A PROPER WRITER OR A CARPET SELLER AND NO ONE WOULD HAVE ASKED WHY HE REPRESENTED THEM IN SUCH AN UNDIGNIFIED FASHION. HE WAS A "GOVERNMENT SERVANT" AND HENCE IT IS EVERY PAKISTANI'S RIGHT TO QUESTION HIS ACTIONS. IM STILL LAUGHING AT PEOPLE HERE BLAMING THE QADIAANIS AND AMERICANS. NO ONE EVEN MENTIONED AMERICA IN THEIR COMMENTS. I READ HASAN NAQVIS COMMENTS AND EVEN THOSE DIDN'T MENTION ANYTHING TO DO WITH POLITICS OR WARS YET FOR SOME REASON THEY WERE DELETED. HOW CAN ONE RESPECT A NEWSPAPER WHEN THEY DELETE FREE SPEECH ?
i feel sad for my country reading this.. people bring up valid issues about shaukat umer who was an ambassador of the state of pakistan, and u are right mumtaza, no one mentioned anything else yet people jump to blame the americans and other parties. it shows where the real problem lies.
hi shaukat bhai. i am ex naighbor. i am emailing u for some times now no response gotten from u plz repond quickly to me plz asap shaukat bhai plz i wait for u
I have stopped reading ever since Hasan Naqvi's comments were deleted. When newspapers side with ex-government officials who demand posting extensions, it is in very bad taste. Adios Corrupt People
I am glad you have stopped reading this newspaper because you are Hasan Naqvi whose nausty comments were deleted by the paper.Adios glad to get rid of you
one would have thought that a newspaper website is for discussing issues and not for accusations and counter accusations. this paper is certainly not worth reading. it is just promoting sensationalism.it is evident that one group, acting in close coordination ridicules the writer while the other criticises the former. some writers say they are not interested in the issues but only in the writer.this is not serious. i too am quitting.
i am sure the qadianis are behind all this character asassination because all of them take orders from outside. one signal to their leader in rabvah and they all start marching. down with the qadianis.
this is certainly the qadiani curse the real baigharats of our country. the real chamchas of america and england.the so call civil society is full of these baigharats. unless pakistan gets rid of them, they will continue to vilify anyone who stands up for our interests.
very good proposal.obama take them all away, they are worse than qadaffi and saddam.
no please leave them here, we will deal with this curse our own way
let a brother earn a buck..
So ask your father in law, was he in the room when respected Ambassador Shaukat Umer asked for a personal favour to Former President Musharraf? Stop making up stories Rameez Qureshi. You jealous taxi driver who looks and behaves like yellow taxi driver your self.
A realistic and excellent article. We are proud to have Ambassador Shaukat Umer write such well constructed and factual work. Keep writing as we always read them with great interest.
God help us if you thought that Zafar Hillaly and Arshad Sami Khan were good ambassadors. Check their records and you will see how they were chamchas of the then ruling parties and good for nothing jumma bazar material, they were boot leggers of the first order and the whole of FO knew about them.
Gentlemen, this is Shaukat Umer the author of this ill fated article.Pl stop it. Zafar Hilaly and Arshad Sami are my senior colleagues. If people want to vilify me I can take that. But please do not degrade my senior colleagues in this commentary. Tariq Niazi Sahib, i respect your views but would respectfully urge you to refrain from personal observations about foreign service officers all of whom, including these two, have always been kind and helpful to me.
BEAWARE all readers that husan naqvi, masud firdos, iqbal, iffat and guest 1 are all but ONE person writing negative comments. You are a low life and hold a grudge against senior officers. A good for nothing, incompetent person. And did you also not get a salary or did you work for the love of Allah for free? So stop taking your anger on others and look within your self for your follies. Your jealousy and hatred in your heart is a curse of God.
Some of the comments are from low level officers that hold a grudge against senior officers. These morons are not intelligent enough to comment on the points raised in this articlattack instead attack a senior ambassador with a 30 year career. These cowards don't realize that their IP addresses can be tracked and identified. What a bunch of idiots!!!!!
The attacks are from low level jealous officers that hold a grudge against senior officers. These morons are not intelligent enough to comment on the points raised in this article and are taking the opportunity to bash a senior ambassador with a 30 year career in the FO. These cowards don't realize they can be tracked by their IP addresses. What a bunch of idiots!!!!!
Information for guest 11, your comments show your inner self. The language you use for respectable and seasoned senior officers of your FO is a disgrace, that speaks volumes about your upbringing and calibre. How dare you talk about competent and seasoned writers like Ambassabor Shaukat Umer. Shame on you, 1000 times over.
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