Denis Korkodinov – Interview with Manzoor Afridi
Pakistan has come under the scrutiny of the US administration due to active cooperation with Russia and China. Washington is watching with concern as its competitors in the international arena are rapidly gaining Asian direction. For this reason, Islamabad has been subjected to unprecedented pressure from the United States. The purpose of this is to force the country’s Prime Minister, Imran Khan, to abandon the alliance with Moscow and Beijing. The practice of international charges of supporting terrorism, as well as the organization of an attempted coup d’etat, undertaken in October 2019, seem to be used as instruments of pressure on Pakistan.
Especially for World Geostrategic Insights, we talked about this with Manzoor Afridi, assistant professor of politics and international affairs at the International Islamic University in Pakistan.
1. In a recent official report of the US Congress, Pakistan is accused of having a destabilizing influence on Afghan politics. In particular, the report notes that Islamabad is associated with anti-government groups in Afghanistan, including the Haqqani group, which is part of the Taliban. What do you think about this? Do not you think that the United States deliberately criticized Pakistan only because Islamabad began cooperation with Moscow in the framework of the North-South gas pipeline project, which Washington is clearly trying to prevent?
– This is not a new step, but the old strategy of various US governments to blame Pakistan. This is used to put pressure on Islamabad and force it to submit to American. US talks with the Taliban are a sign of the failure of the White House administration to solve the Afghanistan problem militarily. If a superpower cannot stop riots in Afghanistan, why should Pakistan be blamed ?!
Yes, the United States deliberately blames Pakistan because our country is drawing closer to Russia. Both Moscow and Islamabad are interested in each other within the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and on a bilateral basis. The North-South gas pipeline, where Russia must finance 85% of the project cost, is a clear confirmation of this.
Pakistan also welcomed the Moscow conferences on Afghanistan and approved the regional mechanism for resolving the Afghan conflict proposed by Russia.
For this reason, Islamabad’s policies are irritating Washington. We are too independent from the United States, for which they are trying to blame us for all our sins. But all the charges against Pakistan are false and have no evidence.
2. On November 20, 2019, a U.S. military aircraft without permission invaded Pakistan’s airspace near the city of Karachi. This is not Washington’s first attempt to violate Pakistan’s state border. With what it can be connected? Does this mean that the United States is preparing a military-political provocation against Islamabad? In the event that as a result of the next invasion of Pakistan’s airspace by the United States, Pakistani air defense systems will bring down an American military aircraft, then how can things develop further? Is it even possible to admit the idea that Pakistan could bring down a plane of the US armed forces in the foreseeable future?
– The Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan has denied the message that the US plane violated the airspace of our state. However, some sources, such as “Nation daily”, released information that this really happened.
I think that the American plane, if it entered the airspace of Pakistan, did it by mistake, as it was a passenger plane. The United States, despite tensions with Islamabad, is unlikely to deliberately attack Pakistan’s air defense systems. In addition, do not forget that Pakistan is a country with nuclear weapons. Therefore, hardly anyone dares to provoke us.
It is worth noting that if a plane violates Pakistan’s sovereignty intentionally, we can attack without warning. But, I repeat, such a scenario is unlikely, since not a single state in the world, including the United States, will dare to create conditions for the use of military force by us.
3. In November 2019, a coup attempt was made in Pakistan under the leadership of Maulan Fazlur Rehman, who is the leader of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam political party. Who finances and with whom is Maulan Fazlur Rehman affiliated?
– The leader of the Islamic political party Jamiyat Ulema-e-Islam Fazlur Rehman, with the support of the leading opposition forces of Pakistan: the Pakistan People’s Party and the Pakistan Muslim League, organized mass demonstrations in the country on October 27, 2019 demanding the resignation of the Imran Khan government . However, this ended in complete failure for the national opposition, since the people did not participate in their provocations. In addition, the international community has remained indifferent to the actions of local Islamists. Therefore, they were defeated. This contributed, inter alia, to the fact that Navash Sharif left Pakistan for fear of persecution.
Fazlur Rehman does not have serious financial support abroad. He is a marginal in Pakistani politics, and therefore, no one takes him seriously.