The Pakistani Spectator

America has unfurled its much awaited strategy with respect to Afghanistan, the one that ought to provide an honourable exit from its eight year long war in Afghanistan. Though the President of the United States did take the Indian Prime Minister and the Pakistani President in confidence before going public with his strategy yet, it is unlikely that India will desist in fomenting the insurgency in FATA and Baluchistan from across the border in Afghanistan. Pakistan has deeper cultural and historic ties with Afghanistan than any other country in the region and therefore has an undisputed major stake in its stability and future. India wants to expand its reach in the region and therefore justifies its presence in the name of rebuilding Afghanistan. India may have had historic links with Afghanistan but that was in pre-partition days. The demography has changed since and new countries and interests have emerged. The respective Indian and Pakistani interests in Afghanistan are therefore incompatible indeed.

India continues to have disputes with Pakistan as the former tries to squeeze Pakistan on multiple fronts. As Indian activities from across the borders in Afghanistan continue to surge, so does the rivalry between India and Pakistan with respect to Afghanistan. The West continues to look the other way and may finally blame both the countries for the worsening law and order situation in Afghanistan. On the other hand India continues to refuse to talk to Pakistan to settle the disputes over Kashmir, water resources and a host of other irritants. Bilateralism has proved a failure and no dispute will be solved unless India lets go off its Pakistan syndrome. Pakistan wants to restart the dialogue process with India but the other side is not willing to. Probably it is gaining time to foster its position in Afghanistan and then bargain with Pakistan on the issue of Afghanistan and other issues from position of strength. In order to make South Asia region a region of peace, India requires fresh thinking on its diplomacy with Pakistan and the courage to accept that the only way out to make this region peaceful is to sit together and talk. The security situation in Afghanistan is turning from bad to worse however, the transition offers another opportunity for both the countries to sit together and discuss the issues. Agreeing to resume the stalled dialogue immediately can enable both the countries find converging interests also.

The days of cold war have ended and these are the times when sentiments and perceptions find no relevance. With India and Pakistan being the nuclear powers, the myth of strategic depth does not seem to hold ground any more. The mutual dialogue, if only India agrees, provides both the countries an opportunity to build mutual trust. The times have come when both the countries must believe that disputes between the nations be they are territorial or others wherein conflict of interests exist, would never be resolved through use of force, how modern it may be, directly or covertly. Theses are the times where adoption of retributive policies by one nation against the other, do not ensure lasting deterrents against them. Pakistan emerged as a result of great sacrifices made by millions of Muslims and India must respect its sovereignty.  It must also recognize Pakistan’s stakes in Afghanistan for its security, integrity and sovereignty is affected with whatever events take place in its immediate neighbourhood in Afghanistan. Rajmohan Gandhi, a biographer and a grandson of Mahatama Gandhi aptly acknowledged in one of his articles published by Dawn Newspaper in its edition of 26 October, 2009 that, “Indians should recognize that ties of geography, ethnicity and family bring to the Pak-Afghan relationship a depth that can never enter the India-Afghan relationship”.

There are lots of positives if India agrees to engage in bilateral dialogue with Pakistan instead of acting stubborn, suspicious and on occasions prejudiced while dealing with Pakistan. Some non state actors on both sides of the border have been successful in achieving their aim of keeping the dialogue between the two countries a hostage. There are so many regional and global issues that certainly can make India and Pakistan converge and stand together for the betterment of this region, an idea on which neither the Indian nor the Pakistani diplomats are averse to. The back channel diplomacy did make waves and paid some dividends in the context of India- Pakistan relations however, since they were not public therefore, no treaty or agreement between the states was signed. Had there been efforts to reconcile the respective public and the government in the process of back channel diplomacy, the results might have been different. Talking out in the open will enable the people and the media go hand in hand for a better bilateral and regional betterment.

The resumption of dialogue between India and Pakistan offers immense help to the international community too in its efforts to stabilize Afghanistan. The resumption may help the Allied Forces achieve their much desired lasting stability in Afghanistan. The resumption of bilateral dialogue would seize the historic Afghan opportunity to build trust and remove each other’s concerns on various issues including the Indian designs in Afghanistan. That the formation of a strong and a stable government in Afghanistan is in the interest of the International community, more so in context of India and Pakistan, and recognition by them that terrorism and extremes on both sides of the border are the greatest threats to their respective stability and sovereignty today that can be best encountered mutually, only if India lets go its expansionist agenda and come to terms with the regional realities and sit with Pakistan and discuss issues.