FM Asif hints at foreign policy shift from US towards China, Russia

Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif said that the time had come to shift Pakistan’s foreign policy focus to China and Russia as it has been US-centric for a long time.

Terming the policy shift as the need of the hour, Asif hinted at an incline towards the left block of the world saying “China lives next to us and we have a common wall. Russia can also be our good friend”.

Addressing a seminar hosted by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) in the federal capital on Tuesday, the foreign minister said, “We can’t have an independent foreign policy until we are economically strong,” and added that US has been Pakistan’s biggest trade partner.

“We have to convert our diplomatic outpost to trade outpost,” he said, adding that Islamabad must improve and correct its relationships. “Peace in Afghanistan is extremely important for us,” he said and added that the US will have to see relations with Islamabad without the prism of Afghanistan.

“We [Pakistan and the US] have a historic and robust relationship,” he said.

Further talking about Afghanistan, Khawaja Asif said that Islamabad wants to live peacefully with all its neighbours and rest of the world. “We want peace in Afghanistan. Aghan war is a liability for Pakistan. We are still suffering very badly from the Afgan war,” he added.

The minister, however, expressed hope and said, “We are trying to manage the situation and to turn the debris into a hope.” He elaborated that the debris includes religious radicalism and said that the nation was facing its consequences.

“There is no end in sight,” he said, adding that despite past mistakes the country was moving on. “We are looking for peace and harmony in the region,” he maintained. Some of the neighbours expressed reservations on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) but Pakistan has a different perspective as it believes that it’s a game changer for the entire region, Asif added.

“We avoid conflicts and maintain a policy of neutrality in relations with Iran and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” he said and added that the country shares a long border with Iran and have a common wall, culture, and language with Afghanistan. He, however, deplored the fact that Pakistan was “facing terrorism from the eastern and western borders”.

We have direct and more stakes in Afghanistan’s peace than any other country, he maintained. We will also have to put our house in order, he said while referring to the Faizabad interchange sit-in. “It was not a good example,” Asif accepted.