Daily Times

In his recent address to Pakistani-Americans at a community dinner in Houston, Pakistan’s Ambassador to United States, Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry, noted that ‘realignments in Asia are posing new challenges to Pakistan’. Without elaborating how the ongoing ‘realignments’ in Asia are different from those in the past, Mr Chaudhry — taking a leaf from General Yahya’s book — claimed that ‘Pakistan had acted as a bridge between the United States and China and was willing to play that role again’.

He was obviously referring to the 1970’s realignment that took place against the backdrop of Kosygin’s (the Soviet Premier) Global-Plan and, most importantly, the beginning of the end of the US’ war in Vietnam. Kosygin’s ‘Global-Plan’ and Vietnam War turned out to be the most formidable foreign policy challenges for the Nixon administration. As he and his wizard Hennery Kissinger sought to counter the Kosygin’s Plan and end the Vietnam War, the worsening relationship between Beijing and Moscow and the end of Cultural Revolution in China proved helpful. The two developments paved the way for Kissinger to normalise US relations with China in order to use the latter as a counterbalance against the growing influence and power of the Soviet Union in Asia. Particularly, Nixon desperately needed Chairman Mao’s and Premier Zhou En-lai’s assistance in negotiations with North Vietnamese.

Since Washington had no diplomatic ties with Mao’s China, it therefore used its diplomatic assets in Paris, Warsaw and Bucharest to send messages to Zhou En-lai. In this Nixon-Kissinger secret-diplomacy, General Yahya’s regime served as a key-conduit between Henry Kissinger and Zhou En-lai. The notion that Pakistan, under General Yahya’s regime had acted as a bridge between the US and China is somewhat exaggerated — for had Yahya been so adroit to bridge the gulf between the two geopolitical and ideological rivals (US and China), his regime wouldn’t have let all the bridges burn between the East and Western wings of Pakistan.

If there is any country today that has the diplomatic and economic clout to tame and reign in the United States, stopping the latter from entering into China’s shop — it is China

As for the current ‘realignments in Asia’ and Pakistan’s role, one can’t help wondering: how will Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif — whose moral and financial credibility as well as intellectual capacity to lead the nation is under serious questions — possibly bridge the gulf — if there is any -between Washington and Beijing. After four years in power and having enjoyed all the perks and privileges that come with it, Mr. Sharif’s ministers and advisers could not even fix the National Flag Carrier (PIA), let alone delivering on more pressing issues like the electricity shortfall.

Furthermore, it is not 1960’s or 1970’s when Americans could have subjected Beijing to an international isolation by blocking its rightful place in the United Nation. China no longer stands among the poorest and technologically backward countries.

Today, Beijing is not only a permanent member of the UN Security Council but also the second-largest economy in the world and is expected, in a decade or so, to overtake the US as the largest economy. Perhaps Mr Chaudhry is incognisant of the fact that China and US are each other’s biggest trading partners with about $600 billion two way trade taking place between them annually. And perhaps, Mr. Chaudhry forgot to watch the way President Xi Jinping was given a royal welcome in England and the way US unfolded red-carpet to receive him in Washington. Trump’s grandchildren, Arabella and Joseph, sang a Chinese folk song ‘Jasmine’ and recited verses from the ‘Three-Character Classics’ as well as Tang dynasty poems to the President Xi Jinping.

Moreover, Chinese economic and strategic relationship with the Russians is also at an unprecedented level. Beijing and Moscow are not only leading the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation but are also seeing eye to eye on various geopolitical and geo-economics issues, internationally and regionally. With Chinese‘One Belt, One Road’ and Russian sponsored ‘Eurasian Economic Union’, the‘Greater-Eurasia’ is now on the horizon. The EU, particularly the Brits, are desperately looking to carve closer economic ties with their Chinese counterparts. In short, if there is any country today that has the diplomatic and economic clout to tame and reign in the Bull (the US) and stop it from entering into China’s shop, it is China.

Therefore, when Aizaz Chaudhry talked about ‘realignments’ in Asia, and Pakistan acting as a bridge between the US and China, it seemed as if he had locked himself in a ‘Davy Jones’s Locker’ and was struggling find a way out by invoking self-proclaimed and self-projected glorious images or feats from the past.

No doubt, Pakistan can play a bridging-role both in terms of economic and geopolitical integration among various regions. Given its geographical location, it enjoys an extreme strategic value and has the potential to literally integrate the entire Asia only if the ruling elite realise that Pakistan’s future does not lie in the sectarian and imperially driven geopolitics of the Middle East and the American so-called war on terror.

Instead, Pakistan’s future, the ruling elite must understand, rests with the ‘Greater-Eurasia’ as it can be central to the ‘One Belt, One Road’ and ‘Eurasian Economic Union’ millennium projects.

The write is a research fellow at CSSPR, University of Lahore