–Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed, Pakistan
There was a shift in the balance of power from West to East and after 9/11 this shift became more apparent due to military failures in Iraq and Afghanistan and also failures of regime change that shattered the status quo in most of the Muslim world.
We have been facing the consequences of these policies based on military might alone. Twenty-First Century was termed as the Asian century; the focus has shifted from the Atlantic to the Asia Pacific. (As of now Afghanistan has no US forces in its soil: Editor).
In the present era, there is talk of greater South Asia driven by energy and economic cooperation which includes China, Myanmar, Iran and Afghanistan and linkage of rail and road networks, energy pipelines such as Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI), Iran-Pakistan (IP) and Myanmar-China pipeline that present huge economic opportunities.
There are two basic trends in the region: first, new regionalism of which Pakistan is a part due to China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC); and the second, the concept of the New Great Game that depicts a mindset of the Cold War, primarily for the containment of China.
These trends have been reflected in the speeches of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (20 July 2011) and President Obama (17 November 2011).
The concept of ‘New Silk Road’, the introduction of the term ‘Pivot to Asia’ and the shift in the U.S. foreign policy towards Asia Pacific were highlighted in these speeches.
Chinese leadership’s response to the U.S. policies is the Silk Road Economic Belt (SREB) and the Maritime Silk Route (MSR) that converge in one country, Pakistan.
CPEC is a 15-year project starting from 2015- 2030, roughly of about billion, which would be a ‘game changer’ not only for Pakistan, but for the whole region.
India has been given a major role in the region on the pretext of the Great Game and its role under Prime Minister Modi has been disturbing for Pakistan as well as for other regional states.
Apart from Indian policies and the violations of ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC), the inconclusive talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban have also been destabilizing the region.
(As of now, Kabul is under the control of Afghan-Talibs).
I would like to highlight three mistakes that had destabilizing global as well as regional impact.
First the U.S. went to Iraq without stabilizing Afghanistan. Afghan Jihad gave rise to Al-Qaeda, while the war in Iraq has given rise to the Islamic State.
Second, the Indo-U.S. civil-nuclear deal has violated the norms of the non-proliferation regime and Washington has shown double standards since Pakistan, Iran and India are being treated differently giving birth to a new arms race in South Asia.
Third, the regime in Syria is being tackled on a priority basis rather than first dealing with the Islamic State.
End Text.
Inaugural address by Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed,
Chairman, Senate Committee on Defence and Defence Production and Parliamentary Committee on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. He is also a senior Journalist.
