Far from the cautious stance taken by the PTI government on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the army chief on Saturday was more explicit in expressing concerns over the crisis, saying the Russian “aggression against a smaller country cannot be condoned”.
Pakistan has until now refused to take a clear stance on the conflict despite pressure being exerted by the West, particularly the US. The Russia-Ukraine conflict has been in the spotlight in Pakistan because of the ‘threatening memo’ controversy.
The government claims that the secret diplomatic cable sent by the Pakistani envoy in Washington after his conversation with US officials contained evidence of foreign conspiracy, seeking the ouster of Prime Minister Imran.
The cable reveals that the US was unhappy with Pakistan’s neutral stance on the Russia-Ukraine conflict and was also of the view that it was Prime Minister Imran’s personal decision to visit Russia in February.
Amid all this, Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, speaking at the Islamabad Security Dialogue, apparently took a different stance on the Russia-Ukraine crisis, ties with the US and was more reconciliatory even towards India, than the prime minister.
Terming the Ukraine conflict a great tragedy, the army chief called for the Russian ‘invasion’ to stop immediately. It was for the first time any senior official used invasion for the Russian action in Ukraine.
Bajwa expressed Pakistan's serious concern over the conflict, adding that "despite legitimate security concerns of Russia, its aggression against a smaller country cannot be condoned".
"Pakistan has consistently called for an immediate ceasefire and cessation of hostilities. We support immediate dialogue between all the sides to find a lasting solution to the conflict," he added. He said the Russian invasion of Ukraine was very unfortunate as thousands of people had been killed, millions made refugees and "half of Ukraine destroyed".
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He said Pakistan enjoyed “excellent defence and economic relationships” with Ukraine since its independence but relations with Russia were "cold" for a long time because of numerous reasons. However, some positive developments in this regard had taken place recently, he added.
Pakistan had sent humanitarian assistance to Ukraine via Pakistan Air Force (PAF) planes and would continue to do, he said. He cautioned that the continuation or expansion of the conflict would not serve the interests of any side, least of all the developing countries which would continue to face socio-economic costs of the conflict which, he said, could "easily get out of hand".
Amid allegations against the US for being behind the conspiracy to topple Prime Minister Imran, Gen Bajwa stressed the need for better ties with the US. "Pakistan does not believe in camp politics and our bilateral relations with our partners are not at the expense of our relationships with other countries."
He maintained that Pakistan enjoyed close strategic ties with China. "Equally, we share a long and excellent strategic relationship with the US which remains our largest export market," he added.
Gen Bajwa went on to say that Pakistan would expand ties with both China and the US. At the same time he stressed the need for close ties with the European Union, the UK and Gulf countries.
Prime Minister Imran recently launched a broadside against the EU envoys for writing an open letter, asking Pakistan to condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Imran reacted angrily in a public rally and said Pakistan was not their slave.
The army chief also talked about the relationship with India. He expressed concerns over the accidental firing of a supersonic missile by India into Pakistan. "Unlike other incidents involving strategic weapons systems, this is the first time in history that a supersonic cruise missile from one nuclear-armed nation has landed in another," he added.
He said the incident questioned the ability of India to manage and operate high-end weapons systems, saying that the neighbouring country's "indifferent attitude in not informing Pakistan immediately about the inadvertent launch" was equally concerning.
"We hope the international community will realise that this incident could have resulted in a loss of life in Pakistan or an accidental shooting down of a passenger plane flying along the path of the cruise missile," Gen Bajwa stressed.
He, however, expressed satisfaction over the peace being maintained along the Line of Control (LoC). No major incident of ceasefire violation took place for a year along the LoC that benefited people living on both the sides, Gen Bajwa added.
On Kashmir, the army chief noted: "Pakistan continues to believe in using dialogue and diplomacy to resolve all outstanding issues, including the Kashmir dispute and is ready to move forward on this front if India also agrees to do so.”
"I believe it is time for the political leadership of the region to rise above their emotional and perceptional biases and break the shackles of history to bring peace and prosperity to almost three billion people of the region."
He further said: "Pakistan recognises that it is the regions and not countries that grow. This is why we believe that peace and stability in our wider region are prerequisites for achieving shared regional prosperity and development. In this regard, our doors are open for all our neighbours.”
On Afghanistan, the army chief urged the international community not to abandon the people of Afghanistan. He maintained that the focus of the international community might have been shifted to Ukraine but they must not forget the 40 million people in Afghanistan.
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