Trade alliances on the premise of competition are welcome. But its genesis should not be to derail a momentum of development that is already underway in a particular region. The off-the-cuff revelation apparently by a State Department official that talks are underway with India to erect a trade corridor, which will connect Washington and New Delhi with the Middle Eastern and Gulf states has come with a lot of gloom. The reason is simple: both the countries, poles apart in geography, are already part of QUAD, a strategic amalgamation that is anti-China by purpose, and both are busy meddling in the region to thwart the inroads that Beijing is making under its multi-billion dollar BRI that connects more than 60 countries in five continents.
The fact that Saudi Arabia has been named purposefully, and also perhaps includes the UAE and other Gulf Sheikhdoms, is portraying a message of isolating Pakistan. But by any means, it goes without saying that the six-member GCC are firmly aligned with Islamabad, and have no intention to play roulette in terms of choosing one over another. Pakistan, of late, is entering into strategic economic deals with Riyadh and other Arab Kingdoms, and has already laid out a Marshal Plan of long-term cooperation in the fields of investment, oil and gas, and mining. Thus, the purported troika that the US official has hinted at should be read calmly, and there is no reason to jump over the gun.
It is also a common observation that President Biden’s administration has a vision to counter BRI and CPEC, and for this purpose had doled out a $500 billion Transnational Alliance in Europe. China is not wary of competition, and has outclassed American and European firms in pooling up an infrastructure of excellence, trade and connectivity. Secondly, it is unrealistic to admit that any trade connectivity from the Hormuz Straits to Indian seashores is possible without tapping the geography of Iran and Pakistan. The logic and essence rest in taking Pakistan on board in any such multilateral developmental initiative.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 10th, 2023.
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