For all his flaws and drawbacks vis-à-vis domestic affairs, Bhutto was a master in foreign affairs.
ISLAMABAD: This is with reference to Shaukat Qadir’s article, “In search of a foreign policy” (July 21). I am intrigued by the writer’s observation that “the last time we had national policies was in the early days of Ayub Khan, and that since then we seem to be rudderless, ‘firefighting’ on a day-to-day basis!”
The fact of the matter is that this reflects the military mindset which still idolises the period of Ayub Khan. It was Zulfikar Ali Bhutto who changed the course of Pakistan’s foreign policy and he did this initially when he was foreign minister under Ayub Khan. For all his flaws and drawbacks vis-à-vis domestic affairs, Bhutto was a master in foreign affairs. Under him, Pakistan was able to diversify its foreign policy options and reached out to China and the Soviet Union — both done during the Ayub era. He also solidified ties with several countries in the Islamic word. That was the last time we had a real foreign policy.
Once General Zia took over, the GHQ began formulating Pakistan’s foreign policy and the situation remains to this day.
Afzal Khan
Published in The Express Tribune, July 24th, 2011.
