By: Kayhan Int’l Staff Writer

 

News from neighbouring Pakistan say thousands of people are out on the streets protesting the unceremonious exit of Prime Minister Imran Khan by his opponents in the parliament who analysts in Islamabad, Lahore, and Karachi say seem to be more concerned about ‘good’ relations with the US, instead of national sovereignty.

This became clear on Monday when the prime minister-elect made the fears of the Pakistani people that the country has become a client state of the US come true, by saying he will work for better relations with the US – without setting any conditions for Washington for reciprocal respect.

We in Iran wish all the best for the fraternal and friendly nation of Pakistan – both people and the politicians – but one thing that baffles us is: what Islamabad has gained from its one-sided ‘friendly’ relations with Washington.

Other than exploitation of the Pakistani elites’ blind love for the make-belief glamour and dazzle of the ‘American way of life’ that in return brings in a few modern aircraft and military hardware which lack teeth, no administration in the so-called White House, whether Democrat or Republican, has ever shown any respect for the country – always calling it ‘failed state’.

Pakistan was viewed as nothing more than a base by the American military for sabotage operations in Afghanistan and the 20-year occupation of that landlocked country that followed.

The US hates to see the 220-million strong nuclear-armed Muslim country use its potential to overcome its economic and other problems for the simple reason that like the Islamic Republic of Iran, a powerful and independent Pakistan, would inspire other Muslim states of the region to coordinate efforts for Islamic unity and creation of a powerful regional bloc.

This is clear by constant US pressures on the various governments in Islamabad against having full-fledged cooperation with the Islamic Republic of Iran in the fields of economy, industry, culture, commerce, etc., despite the fact that the two Muslim neighbours share many historical commonalities, and in spite of membership in the 10-nation Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO). 

The most glaring example in this regard is the reluctance of the successive administration in Islamabad to carry out and activate its section of the natural gas pipeline which Iran has completed right till the borders of Pakistan. 

It is still not too late for the politicians of Pakistan to take stock of the one-sided relations with the US – the archenemy of Islam and Muslims – to charter an independent course on the basis of God’s commandments in the Holy Qur’an and the practical precedents set by Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) regarding statecraft.

As said earlier, Tehran, irrespective of whoever the Pakistani people elect to power, will always stand beside Islamabad in the interests of regional peace and stability, and of course, against American hegemony.