If Pakistan wants to do well, it will need a little help from its friends, urge experts

China’s commitment to help Pakistan questioned at the seminar.

KARACHI:

The only way Pakistan and India will substantially grow economically is if they improve their relationship, said Mani Shankar Aiyar, a member of the Indian parliament, while critically analysing the current state of the subcontinent.

“What Pakistan and India desperately need is dialogue that is entirely uninterrupted and uninterruptable.”

While speaking at a seminar organised at the Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology, Aiyar said that if he were the Indian foreign minister, the relationship between the two countries would be stronger. He added that he seemed to have more friends in Pakistan, than enemies in India.

China’s commitment to help Pakistan was also questioned while the relationship between all three countries was scrutinized by experts from India, France and the United States on Saturday.

Although there were no similarities to the cultural backgrounds of these hand-picked experts, the prime focus of the evening was to ignite a discussion aimed at understanding Pakistan and why it was not growing economically.

The seminar was titled, ‘The situation in South Asia - Global and regional implications’ and it raised vital issues of trust and trade. “Pakistan and India are joined at the hip geographically, they are like Siamese twins,” said Aiyar. “It is absolutely essential for them to set their differences aside and work towards a unified goal.” While talking about why the relationship between both countries was suffering, Aiyar said it was because of the ignorance and prejudice of the foreign offices. He went on to add that according to the Prime Minister of India, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani was a man of peace.

Aiyar felt that dialogue should be absolutely uninterruptable, regardless of events that may take place during discussions - especially since non-state entities would try to create unrest and chaos. He gave the example of the talks that were carried out during the 1965 bombings in Vietnam. Although the Americans were bombing Vietnam, they were also discussing ways to end the war.

Defence analyst Ayesha Siddiqa chose to focus on unreasonable visa policies which made it difficult for Pakistanis to travel to India. She added that the divide between the two countries has increased and has left behind mistrust which could drive a wedge between families on both sides of the border.

The Sino connection

Dr Julian Schofield from Concordia University, Montreal, Canada stressed that there was a high possibility that China would abandon its friendship with Pakistan based on its current structure. He added that over the years it has been a durable friendship, but he questioned its robustness. “China is more likely to abandon Pakistan because of its limited political goals.” He went on to claim that the Pak-Sino relationship was shallow as China would not take on any additional liabilities for Pakistan.

A possible trade route in the southern part of China was also discussed. It was made clear that Pakistan should have opened up suitable trade routes with China and in turn become their biggest trader. However, it was not the opportunities that were lost that were thrust into the spotlight by the panel. They instead focussed on theories that must turn into practice as Pakistan is located in a geographically strategic location.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 13^th, 2011.