Syed Zafar Mehdi
Even though the government in Kabul has made peace overtures to Pakistan, the relationship between the two estranged neighbors continues to be marked by mistrust
The political ties between Pakistan and Afghanistan, the two estranged South Asian neighbors, have always been marked by acrimony and hostility. Although the former president Hamid Karzai once described the two countries as “inseparable brothers”, the brothers have never really liked each other.
The Karzai government had close relations with Pakistan’s Awami National Party (ANP) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) in the initial years. But, in 2006, he accused the Pakistani government of interfering in Afghanistan.
That was perhaps the beginning of political and diplomatic wars between the friends-turned-foes. During the latter part of President Karzai’s tenure, the bickering turned ugly. Afghan government accused Pakistan of surreptitiously sponsoring terrorism on this side of Durand Line, a claim Pakistan dismissed precipitously.
The change of guard in Kabul late last year inspired hope that the fractured ties with the Pakistan may be amended. During election campaign, President Ashraf Ghani vowed to pursue the Afghan-led, Afghan-owned peace process and seek the support of political and military leadership in Pakistan.
As the renowned author and foreign policy expert Ahmed Rashid remarked at the Jaipur Literature Festival recently, the peace process can see headway only if Pakistani military facilitates it since Afghan-Taliban leaders live across the border.
President Ghani’s olive branch to Pakistan
President Ghani, who took over on September 29, 2014, has looked keen to shake hands with Pakistan and work together for peace in the region. During his much-publicized two-day visit to Islamabad late last year, he held talks with top political and military leadership of Pakistan and sought their cooperation in combating terrorism and extremism.
At the London Conference on Afghanistan in December 2014, President Ghani said his government bats for regional cooperation. “We have started an active engagement with our neighbors and we are very pleased with the nature of the dialogue,” he said, thanking Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for indicating that a new strategic opportunity has opened up.
“President Ghani looks sincere to revive the stalled peace process but the cooperation and support of Pakistan is important,” says Wadir Safi, political commentator and vice president of Afghanistan Justice Organisation (AJO). “Nawaz Sharif government must realize that coordinated counter-terrorism operations require sincerity and seriousness.”
President Ghani even extended an olive branch to Taliban to resurrect the peace process. Speaking at a conference in Beijing in October 2014, President Ghani urged Taliban to lay down arms and join the peace process.
“Peace is our top priority. We invite the political opposition, particularly the Taliban, to join and enter Afghan dialogue, and ask all of our international partners to support an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process,” he stated.
There were also reports recently that President Ghani has revived back-channel dialogue with Taliban under the aegis of United Nations. The reports surfaced up following a series of suicide attacks across the country, especially in Kabul.
“It is important to engage armed opposition groups in a meaningful dialogue to understand their demands and grievances,” says Waheed Mujda, political analyst. He appreciates President Ghani for taking the initiative and extending an invitation to the Taliban
Peshawar school massacre and the response of Pakistan government
The attack on Army Public School in Peshawar on December 16, which left 141 people dead including 132 school children, jolted the Pakistani government and military out of deep slumber. In the words of Ahmed Rashid, it served as “a horrible warning”, bringing political parties and military on a common platform against terrorism and extremism.
The responsibility of the gruesome attack was claimed by Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) headed by Mullah Fazlullah. According to TTP spokesman, the attack was a revenge for Pakistan army’s Zarb e Azb (sharp strike) military operation in North Waziristan.
Following the tragic incident, the political commentators in Pakistan claimed that Mullah Fazlullah, the mastermind of the attack, was hiding in Afghanistan. After the whirlwind visit of Pakistan’s Army Chief General Raheel Sharif and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief General Rizwan Akhtar to Kabul, a day after the Peshawar school attack, there were reports that they had asked for extradition of TTP chief.
It almost threatened to derail the peace process as politicians and political commentators in Pakistan went into overdrive. The then Afghan Army Chief General Sher Mohammad Karimi said the TTP Chief does not live in Afghanistan, although he did not entirely deny the possibility.
“We have a long and porous border, so it is possible he might be operating from both sides of the border like other terrorists. But he is always on the run. We have never sheltered terrorists and will never do so,” he said.
“It is highly unlikely that Mullah Fazlullah will be hiding in Afghanistan, and it is ludicrous to suggest he is being sheltered by security agencies here,” says Akbar Orya, Kabul-based political analyst. “Afghanistan has never supported or sponsored terrorism against Pakistan,” he adds.
However, the observers in Pakistan are unwilling to buy that narrative. “There is enough evidence suggesting that Mullah Fazlullah has been operating from Afghanistan’s border areas,” says Raza Malik, a Lahore-based journalist-activist. “Unlike the previous administration headed by Hamid Karzai, the current government in Afghanistan led by President Ghani must stop supporting anti-Pakistan elements.”
President Ghani and CEO Dr. Abdullah Abdullah had strongly condemned the Peshawar school attack. President Ghani during his meeting with Pakistani Army Chief and ISI Chief a day after the attack said he will not allow Afghan soil to be used for terrorism activities against the neighboring country and offered support and cooperation to Pakistani government in their fight against terrorism.
Ahmed Saeedi, a noted political commentator, says Afghanistan has always tried to be a friendly neighbor to Pakistan. “We believe in the values of peaceful coexistence and we have always batted for peace and stability in the region,” says Mr. Saeedi. “We condemned the Peshawar massacre because we believe terrorism in all its forms and manifestations should be condemned, irrespective of who the perpetrator is and who the victim is.”
Since the December 16 massacre, many top Pakistani political and military leaders have come to Kabul. Last month, a delegation of Pakistani politicians including senior leaders like Mahmoud Khan Achakzai, Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao and Afrasiab Khattak visited Kabul and held talks with President Ghani, Dr. Abdullah, National Security Adviser Mohammad Hanif Atmar, among others.
The leaders agreed to bolster bilateral ties to cooperate in the fight against terrorism, and addressed the problems of Afghan migrants in Pakistan, according to a statement issued by the presidential palace. “People in Pakistan have now realized that there is no difference between good and bad terrorism. Terrorism is not only a threat to the two countries but to the region and the entire world”, said the delegation in their statement.
Pakistan’s war in Afghanistan
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif recently said he will not allow Pakistani territory to be used for terrorism activities against Afghanistan. “If our soil is used for terrorism activities against Afghanistan, we will take serious actions against the insurgents,” he said.
The statement came a day after Afghan Army Chief, Gen. Sher Mohammad Karimi accompanied by Gen. John F. Campbell, Commander of International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), met Pakistani Chief of the Army Staff Gen. Raheel Sharif in Islamabad. A statement issued by ISAF said the meeting focused on “coordinated military and counter-terrorism operations” on both sides of the border.
However, despite the assurances given by the Pakistani government and military leaders, the proxy war continues in Afghanistan, allegedly backed by Pakistan. “The bitter truth is Pakistan does not want a strong Afghanistan,” says Mr. Saeedi. “Afghan government has the evidence of Pakistan’s involvement in Afghan war and the issue has been discussed at the highest level.”
In December last year, hundreds of armed insurgents carried out ferocious attacks on Sara Kamar, Kachli and Shenki villages of Dangam district in eastern Kunar province, rendering thousands of people homeless. The clashes continued for weeks and resulted in loss of lives and incalculable collateral damage.
The heavily-armed insurgents destroyed many residential and commercial buildings in various parts of the district and forced thousands of people to flee their homes. The deputy governor of Kunar, Mohammad Nabi Ahmadi, said the insurgents came from Pakistan, a claim corroborated by many army generals and tribal elders in Kunar province.
Since the establishment of the National Unity Government (NUG), there have been many suicide attacks in Kabul, creating panic among the residents. An official of National Directorate of Security (NDS), the premier security and intelligence agency of Afghan government, says the insurgents come from Pakistan and are backed by Pakistan’s notorious intelligence agency.
Even President Ghani turned emotional during his speech at the 18th SAARC Summit in Kathmandu in November last year, while recounting the tragedy of Paktika’s Yahya Khail district, where 57 people were killed by a suicide bomber during a volleyball game.
“To hold wounded children in one’s arms in a hospital, as I was late Sunday evening, is to feel the depth of our fall from our sense of shared humanity and the values of our great religions,” he said.
Rahmatullah Nabil, the chief of NDS, recently sent media into a tizzy by claiming that Taliban chief Mullah Omar lives in Pakistan’s port city of Karachi and is sheltered by ISI. Mr. Nabil said NDS knows the exact location of Mullah Omar, who has been spearheading insurgency in Afghanistan since 2001.
“I won’t be surprised if he is found there, the way Osama Bin Lin was found in Abbotabad,” says Ismail Shah, a resident of Kabul. “They are either incompetent to arrest them or willingly sheltering them,” he adds.
War-mongering by Pakistani politicians
To complicate matters, former and current politicians in Pakistan issued statements that can only be interpreted and taken as controversial and war-mongering. The rhetoric started by the politician-cum-cleric Fazlur Rehman who warned that the terrorist attacks in Afghanistan will continue as long as foreign forces are in the country.
Hamid Gul, the former chief of ISI, said the presence of foreign forces in Afghanistan is not ideal for peace and stability as it emboldens armed insurgents to carry out suicide attacks.
Siraj ul Haq, a senior leader of Jamiat-e-Islami Pakistan said Taliban’s fight against foreign troops stationed in Afghanistan is legitimate and warranted, terming it a “freedom struggle”. Drawing parallels between the Taliban movement in Afghanistan and resistance movement against Indian rule in Kashmir, he said that he supports both “freedom” movements.
“Politicians in Pakistan have this uncanny tendency to stir hornet’s nest by issuing controversial political statements,” says Mr. Orya. “It is the responsibility of civil society in Pakistan to unequivocally denounce this sort of blatant war-mongering and isolate those elements.”
Shumail Zaidi, an activist with Pakistan Youth Alliance (PYA), says Pakistani people want peace in the region. “We are also the victim of terrorism and we understand the suffering of people in Afghanistan,” says Ms. Zaidi. “The views of these few people are not shared by a majority of people in Pakistan, and civil society here has always condemned it.”
Indo-Pak proxy war in Afghanistan: Fact or fiction?
The former military ruler of Pakistan, Parvez Musharraf recently warned that the drawdown of NATO combat forces from Afghanistan could push India and Pakistan towards a proxy war in Afghanistan. The growing influence of India in Afghanistan, he said, is a potential danger for Pakistan.
President Ashraf Ghani, speaking at the SAARC Summit, reacted strongly to Musharraf’s statement, saying he will not allow his country to become the battleground for a proxy war between India and Pakistan.
President Ghani said Afghanistan will not endanger regional security and is committed to promote and strengthen the cooperation between the SAARC member countries. Without mentioning any country, President Ghani said state sponsorship of non-state actors could have “blowback effects”.
Former Afghan president Hamid Karzai, speaking at an event in New Delhi, also reacted sharply to Musharraf’s statement, saying that the Afghan government will not allow the country to be used as battleground for India and Pakistan to assert their regional supremacy. President Karzai, who did not share best of terms with political leadership in Islamabad, slammed Pakistan for continuing to use terrorism as an instrument of state policy and creating instability inside Afghanistan.
Modasir Islami, a Kabul-based civil society activist, says Pakistan has tried and will try to pressurize Afghan government to limit India’s growing influence in Afghanistan, even if that means destruction and killings. “More than India or Pakistan, it affects us,” says Mr. Islami.
Siddharth Varadajan, prominent Indian journalist and political commentator, in an interview with Afghan Zariza also spoke about the need for political dialogue between the three countries, as well as confidence building initiatives like joint economic projects. “You are familiar with the old theory of ‘strategic depth’ against India, something the Pakistanis now say they have abandoned. But there is a great deal of suspicion, most of it unwarranted, and it is in Afghanistan’s interest that these suspicions are allayed,” he said.
India has drawn closer to Afghanistan in recent years with promises of aid, arms and an offer to invest billions of dollars in mining sector. The two countries have also signed a strategic partnership agreement under which India will train Afghan forces. According to observers in India, these developments, which includes supply of arms and military training to Afghan forces, has created alarm in political circles of Pakistan.
“Given the history of India-Pakistan relations, the improving ties between India and Afghanistan do not augur well for Pakistan,” says Syed Jalil Husain, Research Associate at Delhi Policy Group (DPG), New Delhi based think tank.
“The two countries have fought three wars since 1947 and it is clear the government in Pakistan sees Indian presence in Afghanistan as a threat to them, so they will continue to use militants as proxy forces for attacks on India.”
Narender Modi, India’s new Prime Minister, has vowed to strengthen ties with Afghanistan. His meeting with President Ghani was the highlight of SAARC Summit in Kathmandu recently. “Pakistan is not against India’s humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, but any military involvement will not be appreciated by Islamabad,” says Humayun Shirzad, Islamabad-based military analyst.
What is the way ahead?
There is no reason to despair though. Nasirullah Khalid, Lecturer at Kabul University and Legal Training Director at Afghanistan Justice Organisation (AJO), believes the two countries can work together. “They have agreed to joint counter-terrorism operations and that seems to be the only way ahead,” says Mr. Khalid.
“While there are good, bad and ugly elements in both the countries who don’t want peace process to make headway, but I believe the leadership in two countries wants to work together.”
The two countries have also been making concerted efforts to bolster trade and business ties. A delegation of Pakistan-Afghanistan Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industries (PAJCCI) last month called on President Ashraf Ghani in Kabul and apprised him of the efforts being made to improve trade and business between the two countries.
President Ghani said Afghanistan attaches lot of importance to credible economic partners and believes that expansion of trade with Pakistan will result in development and prosperity for both the countries.
The civil society in two countries has also made sincere efforts to initiate a meaningful dialogue on issues of mutual interest, peace-building and reconciliation. A delegation of Afghan civil society activists last month visited Islamabad for Afghanistan-Pakistan Civil Society Conference.
“The two countries must learn to live as good neighbors, and fight the issues of terrorism and extremism together, that is the only way ahead,” says Tuba Aslam Khan, research scholar at Quad e Azam University, Islamabad. “We should remember that there is much more that unites us than what divides us.”
“Both the countries are victims of terrorism and our enemies are common,” says Mr. Khalid. “We must foil their attempts and work together for peace in the region.”
(First published in Afghan Zariza)
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