Realignments in Asia a challenge for Pakistan, says Aizaz

HOUSTON: Realignments in Asia are posing new challenges to Pakistan, says Ambassador Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry, adding the country has dealt with such challenges in the past and will overcome the existing ones, too.

This was an obvious reference to India’s growing influence in South Asia, where it is seen as the new US partner in an effort to contain China. But American experts on South Asian affairs say that the Trump administration’s desire to reach trade equilibrium with China could also create new opportunities for Pakistan to maintain good relations with both.

“We need to focus on our goal and deal with these challenges,” said Ambassador Chaudhry who was addressing a large gathering of Pakistani-Americans at a community dinner in Houston on Sunday. The city is home to one of the largest Pakistani communities in the United States.

Mr Chaudhry reminded the US policymakers that in the past, Pakistan did act as a bridge between the United States and China and was willing to play that role again.

The Pakistan Embassy and consulates across the United States are using the 70th anniversary of independence to highlight 70 years of US-Pakistan partnership, and the ambassador devoted part of his address to “correct wrong perceptions” about the country.

“US perceptions about Pakistan lag behind the reality, which is changing every month,” said Mr Chaudhry while explaining how in the last three years terrorists had been defeated and forced to flee across the border or hide in some urban centres. “And we are cleaning them up too,” he said. “We are a loving people, a caring people and this love and care represents Pakistan, not a handful of extremists.”

Ambassador Chaudhry said that the overwhelming majority in Pakistan had rejected extremists and “we cannot allow a handful of terrorists to hold the entire country hostage”.

The envoy shared this message with a group of US lawmakers he met in the day. One of them, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson, urged the ambassador to arrange for a congressional visit to Pakistan so that the US lawmakers could see the changing realities in the country and adjust their perceptions.

Congressman Al Green emphasised the need for the Pakistani-American community to play its role in improving US-Pakistan relations. Congressman Bato O’Rourke noted that Pakistan too was a victim of terrorism and had made enormous sacrifices in the fight against this menace.

Published in Dawn, May 23rd, 2017

US envoy reminds Pakistan of pledge in anti-terror fight

BAQIR SAJJAD SYEDUPDATED ABOUT 2 HOURS AGO

RAWALPINDI: US Ambassador David Hale calls on Chief of the Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa at the GHQ on Monday.—PPI

ISLAMABAD: US Ambassador David Hale on Monday hoped Pakistan would live up to its pledge of not allowing terrorists to use its soil against any other country as he called for greater Pak-US cooperation for peace and stability in the region.

Ambassador Hale made this observation during a meeting with Army Chief Gen Qamar Bajwa at the General Headquarters, which looked like a close follow-up to US President Donald Trump’s speech at the Arab-Islamic-American Summit in Riyadh in which he had called on Muslim countries to ensure that “terrorists find no sanctuary on their soil”. The US president had called it as the first needed step in the combined effort to defeat terrorism.

The Inter-Services Public Relations, meanwhile, in its statement said: “COAS (Gen Bajwa) reiterated Pakistan’s stance that its soil is not being used for terrorist activities against any other country nor shall we tolerate any such action against Pakistan.”

The US ambassador while meeting the army chief recalled that President Trump had in his Riyadh speech talked “for a vision of peace, security, and prosperity, and unity in conquering extremism and terrorism”.

Mr Hale’s meeting with Gen Bajwa also comes ahead of the Nato Summit in Brussels on Thursday. President Trump is expected to unveil his administration’s policy on Afghanistan at the summit, which could include an increase in the numbers of US troops deployed in that country.

Afghanistan currently has 8,400 US troops. It is widely speculated that President Trump could add another 3,000 – 5,000 in a bid to break the stalemate in the war in Afghanistan. The announcement could also see a change in the role of the troops deployed in the war-torn country. US and Nato troops are currently on a non-combat mission for advising and training the Afghan army, but they could get a combat role under the new policy.

Mr Trump had a brief meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on the sidelines of Riyadh Summit.

The two statements on the GHQ meeting issued by the US embassy and ISPR pointed to the American ambassador taking up the issue of alleged Taliban sanctuaries on Pakistani soil. Furthermore, it was unusual for the US embassy to issue a statement on the ambassador’s meeting with the army chief. Such press announcements are usually made by the ISPR only.

The US embassy said: “Ambassador Hale thanked General Bajwa for his public commitment on May 18 that Pakistan is taking measures to ensure that militants do not use Pakistan’s soil to conduct attacks against any country. In this vein, during their meeting General Bajwa offered renewed assurances that Pakistan would not permit its territory to be used to plan or conduct attacks against Afghanistan.” The US embassy noted that both Ambassador Hale and Gen Bajwa “reiterated their nations’ commitment to a secure, stable, and prosperous Afghanistan”.

The ISPR quoted Ambassador Hale as telling the army chief that the US and Pakistan could work for peace and stability in the region through enhanced coordination and cooperation.

Published in Dawn, May 23rd, 2017

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