Pakistan between South and Central Asia — a bridge or a stumbling block?

KU hosts research fellow Dietrich Reetz at lecture series

KARACHI: As South and West Asia undergoes critical political changes with the withdrawal of the security forces from Afghanistan, regional countries are looking at how the situation will unfold.

Discussing how these events influence Pakistan, Dietrich Reetz, a senior research fellow at Zentrum Moderner Orient in Germany, gave a lecture on 'Pakistan between Central and South Asia — a Bridge or a Stumbling Block' at Karachi University's social sciences faculty on Monday.



"What compulsions and opportunities can we see for regional countries, such as Pakistan, in relation to Central Asia and how may India and Afghanistan impact this regional scenario," he asked. Answering his own query, he said that the reason behind discussing this issue is to use conceptual and constructed reasoning to see issues from different perspectives.



He started off with talking about the relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan. "If Pakistan stops interfering in India's affairs, it will not have to suffer from the consequences of Afghanistan's conflict," he said, adding that countries in the region, such as India, Russia and China, are worried about their relations with Pakistan. This means that Pakistan has to step back and stop interfering in their matters to avoid any consequences, he added.

On Iran's importance to Pakistan, Reetz said that Pakistan can potentially play a mediating role if regional cooperation works. Pakistan can become a game changer for global engagements with Iran, he said.



According to his experiences and research, Pakistan's importance to India is relative to the world, and more so under Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "India does not want to burden itself with Pakistan's problems," he said.

The United States is no longer ready to provide money and weapons without any clear benefits, Reetz pointed out, adding that there is no clear political will within Pakistan in terms of cooperation with the US.

Reetz felt that India, Pakistan and China are in a triangular relationship with more or less the same reasons on all fronts. Pakistan has expanded the influence of China, while the influence is less by imperial design and more by the consequences of solving issues of domestic economic and social stability, he added.

“Pakistan and its army can prosper if they adapt to the new environment by redesigning their strategic potential from a liability to an asset,” Reetz recommended. "You also need strategic rethinking on how Pakistan can be an asset to China, India, Afghanistan, and Iran," he said. Reetz concluded his presentation with the hope that strategic rethinking will benefit Pakistan as the economic, political and even cultural dependence on it will grow.

Prof Dr Moonis Ahmer, the dean of KU's social sciences faculty, put forth some points from Reetz presentation. "Pakistan can work as a bridge between South, Central and East Asia," he said, adding that regional organisations, such as the Economic Corporation Organisation and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, should play a role as well.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 8^th,  2015.