'Hope for the best, prepare for the worst'

PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has expressed concern over girls not being allowed to go to secondary school in Afghanistan, saying “we continue to encourage the new Afghan regime to live up to international expectations if the Taliban want global recognition”.

“As soon as the situation in Afghanistan developed, PPP called for the government of Pakistan to hold a parliamentary session,” the scion of the Bhutto dynasty said in an interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) on Tuesday.

As with various issues in our country, “we have been unable to form a national consensus”, he said. “We require an inclusive foreign policy that is per the will of the parliament not of any individual.”

To a question, Bilawal said Pakistan’s influence over Afghanistan is often exaggerated, however, it should play its role in encouraging an inclusive government in Afghanistan for the protection of women and children there.

"We should work with international agents to ensure that Afghan land is not used to promote terrorism in the region," he maintained.

The PPP chairman said that Pakistan is concerned about the potential blowbacks of the developments in Afghanistan as well as the links between Tehreek-e-Taliban Afghanistan and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.

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"We have suffered immensely at the hands of violent extremism," he said, adding that in order to counter the threat of extremism, “we need determination from the government of Pakistan to ensure there is no space for terrorism or extremism in our society”.

The people of Pakistan and Afghanistan are both exhausted due to the war, adding that “we hope for the best but should also prepare for the worst”.

"We are already seeing an increase in the activities of TTP within Pakistan. It is important to see how we can prevent, as termed by the UNDP, the 'economic disaster' from developing in 2022,” he maintained.

He said, “What we have learned from Afghanistan is that extremism is not countered with bombs alone but ideas and opportunities. We have to provide for the people of Pakistan who have a stake in the political and economic system. When there is this sort of deprivation, all sorts of negative influences can take advantage of the situation."

The chairman welcomed Prime Minister Imran Khan's statement as expressed in his interview with the BBC that Pakistan will only recognise the Taliban government after international consensus. "While I welcome the approach, I hope he creates that consensus within Pakistan," he added.