President Trump can bestow rewards on himself for telling the truth about Pakistan.
For a long time, the US has been providing a huge amount of military aid to Pakistan. However, neither Islamabad, nor Rawalpindi did seem to be interested in fighting terrorism. It may be conjectured that Islamabad has ‘cheated’ Washington. The complaint of President Trump may sound harsh, but no one can deny its implicit sooth.
It’s not that the American president has made such a complaint for the first time. In August 2017, he had warned Pakistan, saying that Islamabad should stop harbouring terrorists, or else the US would stop providing aid to the South Asian country. Pakistan claimed that it had taken steps against terrorism. But, it has become increasingly difficult to believe the statement from Islamabad. Had that really been so – the country would have been in a much better position. Terrorism has claimed so many lives in Pakistan in the last few years. And the global community has now been aware of the fact that the state policy of supporting terrorism has created trouble for the people of Pakistan. The people of Pakistan are paying a heavy price for their government’s policy and actions.

The problem is: the value of truth (or fact) is insignificant in diplomacy. The allegation made by President Trump is not based upon false premises……but has there been any consideration about its political, social and diplomatic consequences?
So far, the results have been positive. The statecraft of Pakistan and its military leaders can never ignore the pressure of Washington. The global community still remembers the complete U-turn in the actions of the then Pakistani President General (Retired) Pervez Musharraf after he received a phone call from President George W Bush in 2001.
This time, President Trump’s criticism has prompted Islamabad to take proper actions against Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, the Pakistani Islamist militant who is a co-founder of Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and the chief of Jama’at-ud-Da’wah (JuD). LeT and JuD are UN-designated terrorist organisations operating mainly from Pakistan. These developments are not mere coincidence. Trump’s suggestion to freeze USD 1.9 billion in aid to Pakistan is just the beginning, as it will certainly create problems for Islamabad in the long run. Pakistan will have no other option, but to take appropriate actions against terror outfits operating from its soil.

In diplomacy, the direct results, as well as the indirect results are equally important. The American president’s move has encouraged China to strengthen ties with Pakistan. The top political leadership in Beijing has already described Pakistan as its ‘all weather friend’. Now, Beijing will definitely try to bolster ties with Islamabad and to back the South Asian country at international level. It will not serve the US’ (as well as India’s) diplomatic interests.
Currently, the relationship between India and China is going through a rough patch due to differences on a range of issues. Moreover, Russia has developed friendship with the Pakistani Taliban. So, the overall situation is alarming and the proximity between China and Pakistan may trigger a fresh tension in the region. Should India not be more vigilant?

Boundless Ocean of Politics on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/boundlessoceanofpolitics/

Boundless Ocean of Politics on Google Plus:
https://plus.google.com/+KoushikDasboundless

Boundless Ocean of Politics on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/kousdas?s=09

Contact us: kousdas@gmail.com

Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das