The sweetness has not come yet but the bitterness is diluting. From silencing the guns at the border along with a sudden re affirmation of 2003 Ceasefire agreement, followed by the call of “burying the past” and “moving forward” by Pakistan’s army chief, the get well soon tweet by Narendra Modi for Prime Minister Imran Khan who was down with Covid accompanied with a formal letter. The response of the letter from Islamabad, the cordial water talks after two years, Avoidance of blame game in Dushanbe and in the series of niceties, the latest is the trade diplomacy or the sweet sugar diplomacy. Now, the question that arises is what forced the change of heart in Islamabad and the New Delhi? Is it the back door diplomacy? Is it the economy? Is it Kashmir? Is it the regional peace? or is it the call to bury the past and move forward?
The diplomatic ties between the two acrimonious neighbors have always witnessed stumbling blocks. These bilateral ties have always short lived because of the war mongering, hyper, insensitive and immature Indian foreign policy. The Pakistan-centric hostile Indian foreign policy always engaged in hatching conspiracies to sabotage internal peace and external image of Pakistan, directly and through its proxies never made a strong pitch to normalize conflict. But this bitterness has started diluting for the first time after 2019 when India abrogated article 370. Affirmative steps including Inception of diplomatic terms are anticipated to further pave the way for complex negotiations.
Let’s answer some basic questions about this thawing relation between the two nations; Why to bury the Past and move forward? The answer is what benefit will war create for both the countries? Even the largest issues of the world are preferred to be settled through dialogues. They are settled through the “Bury Past – Move Forward” phenomenon. Afghan Peace Process is the biggest example today. Moreover, as General Bajwa said that “stable Indo-Pak relations were the key to unlocking the potential of South and Central Asia by ensuring connectivity between East and West Asia.” Will the latest nicety of Sugar diplomacy put Pakistan’s narrative on back foot regarding Kashmir? The answer is absolutely not. Some elements are trying to put this narrative on ground that it is a compromise on Article 370, whereas the reality stands different. No one has compromised on Article 370. Prime Minister in his letter to Modi clearly stated that “Durable peace and stability in South Asia is contingent upon resolving all outstanding issues in particular, the Jammu & Kashmir dispute.” Even, COAS in his speech clearly put Kashmir issue at the heart and asked India to create a conducive environment, particularly in IIOJK. So this narrative fails badly that sugar diplomacy is our compromise on Kashmir and Article 370. Pakistan has maintained a stance on Kashmir and that stance still stands at the heart of everything. The big questions however remain unanswered that “Post recent developments; will there be a structured dialogue on the long standing Kashmir conflict?” “Can Modi govt, riding on anti-Pakistan rhetoric change its narrative?” Will India create an “enabling environment” for dialogue?
Keeping in mind the power politics and deep political divisions in Pakistan, Is the national consensus on an evolving thaw possible? This largely depends on the opposition of Pakistan, which was clearly not cooperating on the FATF amendment bill in the past. Ideally, envision the emblematic power of all relevant stakeholders, from all political spectrums, having one single consensus, for the cause of Peace. Envision and imagine the monumental impact of such togetherness, the impact that it will create on the message of Peace. It’s high time we realize that elements to derail peace efforts are far more than strengthening it. We need to decide, where we stand.
The peace and prosperity of this region in particular and the world at large is largely dependent on relations between the historic rivals India and Pakistan. Today, whatever Pakistan is doing for the regional Peace and stability is commendable and must not be criticized merely because of the Power Politics and its dirty game. When India with its immature foreign policy threatened Pakistan with war, Pakistan as a responsible state, showed maturity and urged Peace. When India was trying misadventures, Pakistan displayed a responsible restraint and when India tried to attack us, Pakistan responded differently. When India abrogated article 370, Pakistan responded on all diplomatic and international levels. Pakistan became an ambassador of Kashmir and is still. When the unholy nexus between Modi and the Indian media was exposed, Pakistan stood vindicated. The history is a witness to it. But we need to move forward, bury the past, of course on our principles, of course on reciprocity, of course by not compromising on Kashmir which we aren’t. But this is high time to “choose peace over panic and chaos”.
The bitterness is diluting, the hearts are changing, for the good, for the Peace, for the people and for the entire region.