Facets of British soft power

Pakistan and UK: cooperation needed

At a time when Pakistan faces an immediate and existential threat of terrorism and a lingering and long term problem of extremism, its multifaceted ties with the United Kingdom assume great importance. Pakistan and Britain have several links which bind the two countries in friendly relations. Many Pakistanis feel more at home in Britain than in any other country. This is not just due to the English language but also the presence of so many familiar faces of Asian origin over there. The United Kingdom hosts the largest Pakistani diaspora outside the Gulf. What is more, unlike the Gulf countries, the UK has given hundreds of thousands Pakistanis the British nationality. Quite a few of these have prospered in business while some have been elected MPs. The British Council has over the decades helped in the promotion of educational activities in Pakistan.

Britain provided strong support to Pakistan for grant of GSP-plus status. Pakistan is currently the largest recipient of bilateral British aid. The United Kingdom pledged £665 million to Pakistan from 2009-2013 through its Department for International Development (DFID). Islamabad is set to receive £446 million ($750 million) of assistance this year. The DFID Pakistan’s programme is aimed at improvement in education and health as well as poverty reduction. While the seminaries set up through Gulf funds have promoted extremism, the DFID programme has helped nurture liberal values and an enlightened outlook. The British lawmakers in the past have complained that funding at this scale was unjustified as Pakistani leaders themselves fail to pay the taxes and do not try to expand the tax net to get funds needed for social development. Hopefully the earful that the finance minister is expected to have received while in Britain would encourage him to have second thoughts about his fondness for SROs. The British lawmakers also want to ensure that the funds allocated are helpful in reducing extremism in Pakistan. As Punjab is getting special attention from the British government, Shahbaz Sharif needs to ensure that steps are taken to curb the fast spreading extremist trends in the province.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has held talks with his British counterpart David Cameron as well as the British home and foreign secretaries. Decisions have been taken to expand cooperation in economy, health, education, defence and security matters. Unless there is peace in the country and the power and gas shortages are under control, there is little hope of any major private sector investment coming from Britain to Pakistan. Increased cooperation between the two countries can however be helpful in removing the two hurdles in the way.