Welcome words from Khar

Khar publicly disavowing the policy of 'strategic depth' is a good initial step to fixing ties with Afghanistan.

When Hina Rabbani Khar was chosen as foreign minister, it was feared by some that she may have a mindset that hews closer to the interests of the military, since she had previously worked for a military dictator. That has not been the case so far, or so it appears. We got further evidence of this on March 2, when Khar rubbished the idea that Pakistan would be seeking ‘strategic depth’ in Afghanistan, once the US begins withdrawing from the country. The policy of strategic depth — which had led Pakistan to support the retrograde Taliban regime, in the hope that Afghanistan could be used as a proxy in case of war with India — has turned out to be a disaster. On the contrary, it has ensured that no future Afghan government will trust us and has paradoxically given India more influence in Afghanistan, since the Karzai government would prefer to have as little to do with us as possible. That the foreign minister has now publicly disavowed this policy is a good initial step to fixing ties with Afghanistan and repenting for past sins.

And this again raises the question that did the foreign minister say what she did with the blessings of the military establishment or not? If she did, then it indicates a very welcome change in thinking on Afghan policy and a realisation that perhaps the time has come to change old mindsets and attitudes. Of course, if the foreign minister said this on her own, then it may represent nothing more than some well-intentioned words. The reason we say this is because despite having a civilian elected government our policies — such as those relating to Afghanistan, India, America and our overall approach to fighting the war on terror — are dominated by the military and its ancillary intelligence apparatus. If a change has indeed taken place, then Khar’s statement would perhaps be the first reflection of that — though for now it may be confined to words.

We should all realise why strategic depth has been a disaster: it means turning a blind eye to the presence of, or even actively helping, the Afghan Taliban.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 4^th, 2012.