Bilawal Bhutto has achieved what Pakistan wanted from a visit to India: American scholar

Photo of author

By Webdesk


Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari poses for a photo with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar at the meeting of the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers in Goa, India on May 5, 2023. — Indian Ministry of External Affairs/Handout through Reuters
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari poses for a photo with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar at the meeting of the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers in Goa, India on May 5, 2023. — Indian Ministry of External Affairs/Handout through Reuters
  • The Pakistani delegation has done its job and should return satisfied, says former foreign minister.
  • Experts believe there is no chance of talks between India and Pakistan in the current environment.
  • “No breakthrough” expected in India-Pakistan relations, says former diplomat.

Following Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari’s visit to the Indian city of Goa for the advocacy of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), US scholar Michael Kugelman believes Pakistan has “accomplished” what it set out to achieve.

The top Pakistani diplomat attended the two-day moot in the coastal city and stole all the attention as all Indian media focused on Bilawal Bhutto.

In his official speech, the foreign minister responded to his Indian counterpart’s old mantra of cross-border terrorism, telling him not to “arm terrorism for diplomatic scoring” and called for cooperation between member states.

Tweeting about the goings-on in Goa, the director of the South Asia Institute at Washington-based The Wilson Center, Kugelman tweeted: “There was a lot of criticism of Pakistan FM’s visit to India for SCO, but he seems to have achieved what Islamabad sought: Participation in the SCO deliberations and separate side meetings with all SCO members except India. Multilateral engagement [with bilaterals] out of the way.

‘Pakistani delegation did its job’

While former foreign minister Salman Bashir believes the decision to close the SCO The top of the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) was correct.

“I think we did everything we could to be present at an important SCO event. The Pakistani delegation has done its job and should return satisfied,” he said The news.

Former ambassador Javid Husain, who served in China in the 1980s, explained: “Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari’s visit to Goa was primarily to attend the meeting of SCO foreign ministers. It enabled our Secretary of State to convey Pakistan’s point of view on issues such as security, development, regional connectivity, China Pakistan Economic Corridor, Afghanistan, climate change, Kashmir and terrorism during the conference’s deliberations, media commentary and meetings.

Husain added that Bilawal‘s visit “emphasized the great importance Pakistan attaches to the SCO”.

Right decision

Director of Programs at Jinnah Institute Salman Zaidi, whose work has focused on Track 2 diplomacy, agrees with the clear vision that led Pakistan to attend the SCO summit, saying “Pakistan should never give up platforms whose member and it is to the credit of our foreign policy institution that despite the known challenges it has been decided to attend the SCO Summit.

Pakistan’s presence at the summit also speaks to the changing geopolitical realities and the visit to Goa will – in a larger context – benefit Pakistan.

A point Salman Zaidi agreed: “Global leaders are adapting to rapid geopolitical changes. Not only should Pakistan’s presence be highlighted in such forums, it can also take advantage of diplomatic opportunities to address challenges and exploit its strategic advantages.

‘No surprises’

Pakistan’s former representative to the United Nations, Dr Maleeha Lodhi, believes there were no surprises during the visit.

“The visit went according to the script. No surprises. Both countries reiterated their positions and that meant [that]far from the melting of the ice between the two countries, the atmosphere was further degraded – precluding any forward movement in their troubled relations.

‘Unsolicited comments’

While the visit was welcomed in foreign policy circles, many criticized Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar’s behavior towards the Pakistani delegation.

The Indian minister called Indian media during a press conference after the summit Foreign Minister Bilawal “a promoter, fairer, and I’m sorry to say, spokesman for a terrorism industry that is Pakistan’s mainstay”.

Bashir said, “Jaishankar’s rhetoric against Pakistan was really unnecessary. But that is common in such situations… I think the main thing is that the Indians are not ready to go with Pakistan at the moment. And we are fine with that, I suppose.”

The position was also supported by Husain, who said “no breakthrough” in India-Pakistan relations can be “expected”, nor did it take place at the SCO summit.

He added that Jaishankar’s comments “clearly showed India’s intransigence and its refusal to create an environment conducive to putting Pakistan-India relations on a positive trajectory. Apparently, India is determined to exploit Pakistan’s current political instability and economic weakness to advance its anti-Pakistani and hegemonic plans in the region. [Jaishankar] also underlined New Delhi’s refusal to show any flexibility on the Kashmir issue, which is an indispensable condition for a peaceful settlement.”

‘Indian behavior shame’

On the other hand, Salman Zaidi called India’s behavior “unfortunate” but believes that despite the “anticipated vitriol of Indian officials”, Pakistan can still “claim its rightful share in foreign affairs, especially regional issues”.

“India’s stance on Pakistan is not unexpected. The talking points are familiar and the tired script about terrorism has been used creatively again. FM Jaishankar reserved his choicest vitriol for Pakistan, befitting the top diplomat of any host country, but Jaishankar is ideologically more committed to anti-Pakistani rhetoric than any of his predecessors,” said Zaidi.

‘Excellent visit’

Political analyst Mosharraf Zaidi said: “It was an excellent visit. It sparked a diatribe from the Indian Foreign Minister, exposing India’s inability to rise to the occasion and participate in multilateral forums at the level expected of a regional power.”

‘Super on Kashmir’

In a tweet, former diplomat Abdul Basit, who has also served as Pakistan’s high commissioner to India, said he was impressed by Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari’s interview with Indian journalist Rajdeep Sardesai.

The former envoy added that the foreign minister was “particularly fantastic in Kashmir”.

“Glad he increased too [the issues of] Kulbhushan Jhadav and Samjhota Express pop. The way Jaishankar reacted to his press conference only reflected his hubris and frustration,” Bast said.


#Bilawal #Bhutto #achieved #Pakistan #wanted #visit #India #American #scholar

Source link

Share via
Copy link