Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain withdrew their ambassadors from Qatar

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain withdrew their ambassadors from Qatar

    Wednesday, March 05, 2014   No comments

GCC states

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain withdrew their ambassadors from Qatar on Wednesday in an unprecedented public split between Gulf Arab allies who have fallen out over the role of Islamists in a region in turmoil.

Qatar's cabinet voiced "regret and surprise" at the decision by the fellow-members of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, but said Doha would not pull out its own envoys and that it remained committed to GCC security and stability.

The Saudi-led trio said they had acted because Qatar failed to honor a GCC agreement signed on November 23 not to back "anyone threatening the security and stability of the GCC whether as groups or individuals - via direct security work or through political influence, and not to support hostile media".

Saudi Arabia and the UAE are fuming especially over Qatar's support for the Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist movement whose political ideology challenges the principle of dynastic rule.

They also resent the way Doha has sheltered influential Brotherhood cleric Yusuf Qaradawi and given him regular airtime on its pan-Arab satellite television channel Al Jazeera.

The GCC, which normally keeps its disputes under wraps, is a pro-Western alliance of monarchies set up in the 1980s to counter Iranian influence in the Gulf, and includes several of the world's biggest producers and exporters of oil and gas.

Kuwait and Oman did not join the diplomatic rebuke to Qatar. Kuwait's parliament speaker Marzouq al-Ghanim said he was concerned by its implications. Oman has not commented.

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In an exclusive interview to CCTV correspondent Wang Weiwei, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has confirmed that Syria plans to honor its commitment to the chemical weapons disarmament deal

In an exclusive interview to CCTV correspondent Wang Weiwei, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has confirmed that Syria plans to honor its commitment to the chemical weapons disarmament deal

    Monday, September 23, 2013   No comments

In an exclusive interview to CCTV correspondent Wang Weiwei, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has confirmed that Syria plans to honor its commitment to the chemical weapons disarmament deal.
 

But he warned that rebels could throw a spanner in the works when UN weapons inspectors arrive to oversee the destruction of the weapons. Al-Assad gave more details in the exclusive interview.
Reporter: "According to the US-Russia's agreement, after the list is handed in to the OPCW, UN inspectors will enter Syria again this November. And all weapons should be removed from Syria or destroyed by mid-2014. Is the Syrian government able to meet the timeline?"

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said, "For the Syrian government, right now we need to ensure two things: one is to submit necessary information and data to the OPCW. This has been done days ago. It has been completed last week and the information is credible. Second is to facilitate the work of the UN inspectors who will visit the production and restoration sites of the chemical weapons in the coming month. There is no question to that. Now the only obstacle is the security conditions in some areas, which will make it difficult for the inspectors to enter. We know that those terrorist militants in these areas take orders from some countries, who may instigate them to block the visit of the inspector. And they may even shift the blame on to the government."

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Emboldened Mr Putin changed the G20 agenda – which was originally focused on trade and tax matters – to include a dinner discussion about Syria

Emboldened Mr Putin changed the G20 agenda – which was originally focused on trade and tax matters – to include a dinner discussion about Syria

    Thursday, September 05, 2013   No comments

... His move brought the conflict to the heart of the summit, possibly in the hope that Mr Obama would be seen to have no majority support for military strikes on the Assad regime, which he favours in retaliation for the chemical attack on the Ghouta suburb of Damascus on 21 August.

Mr Putin – who has supported President Assad throughout the two-year civil war – was judged to have won the first round of his showdown with Mr Obama. A number of leaders sounded cool, and in some cases hostile, to the US President’s call for action. China’s Deputy Finance Minister, Zhu Guangyao, told a briefing: “Military action would have a negative impact on the global economy, especially on oil prices.”

The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who is at the G20, added: “A political solution is the only way to end the bloodshed in Syria.” Even the Pope appealed for G20 leaders to “lay aside the futile pursuit of a military solution”, writing in a letter to Mr Putin that there should be a renewed commitment to seek … a peaceful solution … unanimously supported by the international community”.

The emerging positions left the Russian President looking pleased as he waited outside the ornate Constantine Palace to greet guests who together represent two-thirds of the world’s population. None of the guests was more eagerly anticipated than Mr Obama, who emerged from of his armour-plated limousine and extended a stiff handshake. Looking stern at first, Mr Obama praised the beauty of the palace and then grinned for the cameras as he and Mr Putin shook hands vigorously. The Russian President smiled, but the 20-second exchange was anything but warm. The White House went out of its way to say that Mr Obama would not be holding any one-on-one sessions with the Russian leader at the summit.
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Obama faced growing pressure from world leaders on Thursday not to launch military strikes in Syria at a summit on the global economy that was hijacked by the conflict

Obama faced growing pressure from world leaders on Thursday not to launch military strikes in Syria at a summit on the global economy that was hijacked by the conflict

    Thursday, September 05, 2013   No comments

The Group of 20 (G20) developed and developing economies met in St. Petersburg to try and forge a united front on how to revive economic growth, but failed to heal divisions over a U.S. plan to wind down a program to stimulate the world economy.

The club that accounts for two thirds of the world's population and 90 percent of its output looked as divided over therapy for the economy as it is over possible military action following a chemical weapons attack in Syria.

Obama arrived in Russia's former imperial capital with a showdown looming at a dinner hosted by President Vladimir Putin, with a debate on Syria the main course on the menu.

Obama wore a stiff smile as he approached Putin and grasped his hand. Putin also wore a businesslike expression and it was only when they turned to pose for photographers that Obama broke into a broader grin. There was no clutching of arms or hugs.

The first round at the summit went to Putin, as China, the European Union, the BRICS emerging economies and Pope Francis - in a letter - warned of the dangers of military intervention without the approval of the U.N. Security Council.

"Military action would have a negative impact on the global economy, especially on the oil price - it will cause a hike in the oil price," Chinese Vice Finance Minister Zhu Guangyao said.

The BRICS - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - echoed that remark, and the Pope, who leads the world's 1.2 billion Roman Catholics, urged the G20 leaders to "lay aside the futile pursuit of a military solution".

European Union leaders described the August 21 attack near Damascus, which killed up to 1,400 people, as "abhorrent" but said: "There is no military solution to the Syrian conflict."

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China claims that "Xinjiang terrorists finding training, support in Syria, Turkey"

China claims that "Xinjiang terrorists finding training, support in Syria, Turkey"

    Monday, July 01, 2013   No comments

From a foreign student studying in Istanbul to a soldier receiving training in Syria's Aleppo, to a terrorist plotting attacks in China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, 23-year-old Memeti Aili said he felt like his dream was turned into a nightmare.

Memeti Aili was recently caught by the police when returning to Xinjiang to complete his mission to "carry out violent attack and improve fighting skills" assigned by the East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM). ETIM is a terrorist group that aims to create an Islamist state in Xinjiang, which works alongside the East Turkistan Education and Solidarity Association (ETESA), an Istanbul-based exile group.

"After hearing their lectures, all I could think about was jihad and I totally abandoned my studies and my family," he told the police. "But thinking back, it was like a nightmare."

An anti-terrorism official told the Global Times in an exclusive interview that about 100 people like Memeti Aili had travelled to Syria to join the fighting alongside Syrian rebels since last year.

"Their purpose is to overcome their fears, improve their fighting skills and gain experience in carrying out terror attacks," according to the official who declined to be named.

Xinjiang, in China's far west, borders central Asia and is home to 10 million Uyghurs. It was rocked by two terror attacks that killed 35 people last week, just days ahead of the fourth anniversary of the July 5 riot in the capital Urumqi that left 197 people dead.

Yu Zhengsheng, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, led a work team to Urumqi after President Xi Jinping on Friday arranged measures to safeguard social stability.

"We will step up efforts to crack down on terrorist groups and extremist organizations while tracking down those wanted for these crimes," Yu was quoted by the Xinhua News Agency.

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The U.S. Wants Snowden. Why Won't The World Cooperate?

The U.S. Wants Snowden. Why Won't The World Cooperate?

    Wednesday, June 26, 2013   No comments

China appeared perfectly happy to let Edward Snowden slip away despite a U.S. request for his

Why is it proving so difficult for a superpower to get a bit of international cooperation over Snowden? He has acknowledged leaking details of U.S. government surveillance programs, and has been charged with espionage and other offenses.

President Obama recently met his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, in hopes of setting a positive tone for what is widely regarded as the single most important international relationship.

And the Obama administration has often touted its "reset" with Russia and its President Vladimir Putin, though there's been plenty of ongoing friction.

Writing in The Wall Street Journal, columnist Bret Stephens sees the Snowden episode as part of a broader decline in American influence.

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arrest. Russia appears to enjoy thumbing its nose at Washington as Snowden cools his heels at a Moscow airport. Ecuador is toying with the notion of granting him asylum.

How did China, Russia, Cuba, and Ecuador become the champions of political freedom?

How did China, Russia, Cuba, and Ecuador become the champions of political freedom?

    Wednesday, June 26, 2013   No comments

It may be years before the full cost of Edward Snowden’s intelligence leaks can be measured. But his disclosures about top-secret surveillance programs have already come at a price for the U.S. government: America’s foes have been handed an immensely powerful tool for portraying Washington as a hypocritical proponent of democratic values that it doesn’t abide by at home.

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When China and Russia become protectors of activists, the West’s double is highlighted

When China and Russia become protectors of activists, the West’s double is highlighted

    Wednesday, June 26, 2013   No comments

How does the case of Edward Snowden stand in comparison to those of Chen Guangcheng, Boris Berezovsky, and Andrei Borodin?

Russia and China are more than resisting pressure from the U.S. for their role in harboring Edward Snowden, Chinese and Russian leaders might use it to limit the West’s support of activists in the two countries. Consider the following official statements and editorials to get a sense of the reversal of roles and the declining U.S. credibility when it comes to foreign policy.

Alexei Pushkov, the head of the State Duma's international affairs committee :

 "By promising asylum to Snowden, Moscow has taken upon itself the protection of those persecuted for political reasons… There will be hysterics in the US. They only recognize this right for themselves.”

As an editorial in the Guardian pointed out, one of the recurring themes in Russian foreign policy is to slam the West for having “double standards,” such as judging pro-Western dictatorships by a totally different yardstick from anti-Western ones, a tactic that works extremely well because it is so often true. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov most recently used that line in a tough statement hammering Western hypocrisy about Syria. Speaking in a recent interview with America's CBS network released on Monday evening, Lavrov said the West had a policy of double standards in approaching foreign regimes, particularly in the current Syrian conflict between the government and rebel forces.

“You either deny terrorists any acceptance in international life, or you make your double standard policy work the way it has been working - 'I don't like that guy in this country, so we will be calling him a dictator and topple him. This guy in another country is also dictatorial, but he's our dictator.”

Here are a couple of news items and editorials that stress the same points. Of particular interest is the case of academic freedom stemming from NYU support of the Chinese activist and buckling under pressure to save an expansion opportunity.

Chinesedissident Chen Guangcheng: NYU is forcing me out

Chen’sdeparture shows US moral dilemma

 

Pakistan’s Foreign Policy Challenges

Pakistan’s Foreign Policy Challenges

    Wednesday, May 29, 2013   No comments

Pakistan

The new government in Pakistan will have to take some hard decisions on difficult issues pertaining to foreign policy, even though the choices will be very limited. Numerous complexities will emerge not only in its dealings with its immediate neighbours like Afghanistan and China, but also external players in the sub-continent, predominantly the US.

As far as Afghanistan is concerned, the most difficult challenge for the new Pakistani leadership will be how to manage the situation post-2014, and how best to guard its interests. Within a year, two things are expected to happen: fresh elections for the Afghan President and the withdrawal of the US forces from Afghanistan. In a situation where Karzai is not very popular either with the non-Pashtuns or with the Taliban, Nawaz Sharif will have an onerous task to ensure that the next president is acceptable to Pakistan, and will help in safeguarding Pakistan’s interests. The second part of the challenge will be the roadblocks to the reconciliation process and how Nawaz Sharif will influence the final outcome – whether he will continue to give support to the Taliban, which will not be acceptable to the Americans or to Karzai, or whether he will try to accommodate the non-Pashtuns and non-Taliban Pashtuns to arrive at a durable solution. The core interest of Pakistan will be the same, to ensure that a pro-Pakistan dispensation is in place once the Americans leave. Whether or not to support the Taliban will be a difficult choice.

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Pakistani elections: more than a dozen killed by bomb blast in Karachi

Pakistani elections: more than a dozen killed by bomb blast in Karachi

    Saturday, May 11, 2013   No comments

At least 18 people have been killed in bomb attacks and gun battles in Pakistan as millions of voters turned out despite the threats of violence in landmark national and provincial elections.

A bomb attack in the port city of Karachi on Saturday morning targeted the office of the Awami National party (ANP), killing 11 people and wounding more than 40, according to Reuters. Local media also reported gunfire in the city, underlining the range of risks faced by the country's 86 million voters.

A bomb exploded outside a polling station in the north-western city of Peshawar, killing at least one person and wounding 10 others, according to local police officer, Mukhtiar Khan. An explosion also destroyed an ANP office in the north-west, though no casualties have so far been reported.

In the south-western Balochistan province where separatists oppose the election, gunmen killed two people outside a polling station in the town of Sorab and a shoot out between supporters of rival candidates in the town of Chaman ended with four people dead, according to police and government officials.

The violence follows a string of bombings and shootings by the Taliban, which have marred the runup to the elections and claimed the lives of more than 130 people.

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Opposition leader jailed for insulting Kuwaiti ruler

Opposition leader jailed for insulting Kuwaiti ruler

    Monday, April 15, 2013   No comments

Kuwaiti opposition leader and former MP Mussallam al Barrak (pictured) was sentenced to five years in prison on Monday after being convicted of making statements insulting the country's ruler, Sheikh Sabah al Ahmad al Sabah, at an October 15 rally.

A Kuwaiti court on Monday sentenced main opposition leader and former MP Mussallam al-Barrak to five years in prison after he was convicted of insulting the emir of the OPEC member country.

Barrak, a nationalist, was charged with making statements deemed offensive to the ruler of the oil-rich Gulf state, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, at a public rally on October 15.

Criticising the emir is a felony that carries a maximum of five years in jail.

"The court has sentenced the defendant Mussallam al-Barrak to five years in prison with immediate effect," said judge Wael al-Atiqi in a half-packed courtroom in the Palace of Justice in the capital Kuwait City.

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Pakistan: Pervez Musharraf admits secret CIA drone deal with US

Pakistan: Pervez Musharraf admits secret CIA drone deal with US

    Saturday, April 13, 2013   No comments

Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan’s former military ruler, has for the first time admitted doing a secret deal with America to allow CIA drone strikes against terrorist targets.

His comments contradict repeated Pakistani denials that the US has ever been given permission for the strikes. They come amid growing evidence that the country’s intelligence service is collaborating with its American counterpart.

In an interview with CNN, Mr Musharraf, who returned to Pakistan three weeks ago, said he had authorised strikes “only on very few occasions where the target was absolutely isolated and had no chance of collateral damage”.

The first strike on Pakistan soil came in 2004, five years into Mr Musharraf’s reign, killing a tribal leader seen as an enemy of the government. Since then there have been more than 300 strikes and more than 3,000 deaths.

Islamabad has publicly condemned the attacks, describing them as an infringement of Pakistani sovereignty.

They provoke intense anger and have been blamed for stoking anti-American sentiment in the country. Yet there has long been suspicion that Pakistan had given consent.

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Brazil, China, and India Are Fat, And Getting Fatter

Brazil, China, and India Are Fat, And Getting Fatter

    Monday, April 08, 2013   No comments

In China, the growth rate of new Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants is 13 percent a year, compared with 2.9 percent in the U.S. And as the chain has expanded, so have Chinese citizens' waistlines. Recently, the aspiring BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) met in sunny Durban, South Africa, for their fifth summit to discuss their plans for creating their proposed BRICS Development Bank (BDB). Despite ongoing doubts that these nations will be able to quickly come to an agreement over where and how the bank will function, there is hope that these differences can be overcome.

But there is one issue that the BRICS leaders seemed to have overlooked. That is, how will the BRICS bank address these nations' ongoing struggle to contain the spread of disease? Diseases commonly attributed to economic wealth and prosperity, such as obesity and diabetes, are on the rise and will inevitably threaten their bristling economies should the BDB fail to adequately invest in healthcare infrastructure.

The proposed BDB bank is mainly focused on providing loans and grants - approximately $4.5 trillion in total - to finance infrastructural development projects in the BRICS and other developing nations. This funding will be used to construct railroads, bridges, highways, and ports. Created as an alternative " Bretton Woods for the developing nations," loans will be provided at favorable lending terms. The bank will also provide a currency reserve of $100 billion dollars to be used in times of economic crisis. Another implicit goal through this banking endeavor is to decrease the BRICS and other developing nations' ongoing reliance on the World Bank and IMF for financial assistance while creating a lending facility that better understands developing nations' context and needs.

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The Nation Is Made Of These

The Nation Is Made Of These

    Sunday, April 07, 2013   No comments

by Javed Jabbar

The further we move on from March 23, 1940—and from December 16, 1971, when the original Pakistan disintegra­ted—the stronger and deeper, and at the same time, more stressful, becomes the search for a cohesive sense of Pakistani nationalism.

Composed of several elements, Muslim identity is the prime driver of Pakistani nationalism, but not exclusively so. Non-Muslim identities are small, yet vital and intrinsic parts of Pakistani nationalism. Foremost among them are Pakistani Hindu and Buddhist citizens. In a foundational sense, Pakistani Hindus and Buddhists are the oldest Pakistanis. Their ancestors have lived upon the lands that constitute our territory for centuries before the first Muslims arrived, or before the first local was converted to Islam.

If roots in territory make people eligible to be regarded as ‘sons of the soil’, then these non-Muslims are the first sons and daughters of Pakistan. It is unfortunate that, in the name of a state entity created less than 70 years ago, peoples whose ancestors have lived on these very territories for over 7,000 years are now ‘minorities’. Worse, many of them are regarded (and regard themselves) as second-class citizens. Adherents of all non-Islamic faiths are ineligible, by virtue of their religion, to be elected president or prime minister. This is so despite the fact that Article 20 of the Constitution grants—subject to law, public order and morality—freedom to profess religion and to manage religious institutions. Article 25, which deals with citizens’ equality says, in part: “All citizens are equal before law and are entitled to equal protection of law.” This is further reinforced by Article 36, which obliges the state to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of minorities, including their due representation in the federal and provincial services.

Working with Hindus, Christians and Zoroastrians for over 30 years in remote areas and in urban centres, this wri­ter has first-hand experience of their attitudes and act­ions. These non-Muslim Pakistanis have a deep love for Pakistan. They are proud Pakistanis, and contribute abundantly to the country’s progress—and little to its problems! Yet Pakistani Hindus are often regarded by segments of the state and society as Indian ‘agents’ or as being inherently disloyal to Pakistan. Such suspicion is a profanity in itself.

However, this does not prevent non-Muslim Pakistanis from rendering notable roles in all areas, from agriculture, business and law to education, diplomacy and politics.

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Christians, police clash in Pakistan after Muslim mob burns homes of minority religious group

Christians, police clash in Pakistan after Muslim mob burns homes of minority religious group

    Monday, March 11, 2013   No comments

LAHORE, Pakistan — Hundreds of Christians clashed with police across Pakistan on Sunday, a day after a Muslim mob burned dozens of homes owned by members of the minority religious group in retaliation for alleged insults against Islam’s Prophet Muhammad.

Christians are often the target of Pakistan’s harsh blasphemy laws, which rights activists say are frequently used to persecute religious minorities or settle personal disputes. Politicians have been reluctant to reform the laws for fear of being attacked by religious radicals, as has happened in the past.

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The Taliban's New, More Terrifying Cousin

The Taliban's New, More Terrifying Cousin

    Thursday, February 28, 2013   No comments

Abdul Amir (as we'll call him), a chemistry teacher in Quetta, Pakistan, was taking an afternoon nap on Feb. 16 when his house began to shake and the earth let out an almighty roar. His mother and sisters started screaming and ran out of the house, but by the time they gathered in the street, the noise had already stopped. He climbed to the roof to get a better view of what happened and saw a thick cloud of bright white smoke, a mile south, suspended above the market place where his students would be buying snacks after their weekend English classes. He rushed back down to the ground, started his motorcycle and took off toward ground zero, knowing all the while that this was foolish - during a bombing five weeks before, the people who came to help were killed by a second explosion.

Still he raced through the streets, swerving around people running away from the bomb, finally arriving at a scene even worse even than he'd feared. The blast had been so powerful that the market hadn't been destroyed so much as it had been deleted, as had the people shopping there and those in buildings nearby. Everything within 100 meters was simply flattened, and all that remained were the metal skeletons of a few flaming vehicles and the chemical smell of synthetic materials burning. Abdul would find more than fifty of his students were injured. One of his favorite students would die from her wounds six days later.

In all, 17 students and two teachers in just one school would be killed, their bodies mostly unrecoverable. No secondary bomb went off that day, but it didn't need to, because the message to first responders had been heard: So few ambulances showed up that people were relegated to ferrying their dead and dismembered in their own cars.

For the Hazaras, a group of Shia Muslims from Afghanistan with a large population in Pakistan, leaving the house has become a fraught enterprise. Schools have emptied, students stay home and parents try to explain to their children why people want them dead. They believe their government is at best uninterested in protecting them, and many are so traumatized they believe it's complicit. The Feb. 16 bombing killed 85 people, almost all of them Hazaras, and the number is still rising as people succumb to their wounds. About a month prior, another attack had killed 96 people who were also almost all Hazaras. The victims are not bystanders; they are a people who are being exterminated.

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Pakistan: bomb targeting Shiite Muslims kills and wounds 250 people

Pakistan: bomb targeting Shiite Muslims kills and wounds 250 people

    Saturday, February 16, 2013   No comments

At least 63 people are dead and another 180 are wounded after an explosive device went off in a crowded marketplace in Quetta, Pakistan. Photos from the scene show heavy smoke rising over buildings.

Pakistani news outlet, Dawn, cites Quetta senior police official Wazir Khan Nasir, who says the bomb appeared to target Shiite Muslims because of the neighborhood the attackers picked. Most of the victims are women with their children who were shopping for vegetables.

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Chinese Regime Courts Africa With Confucius Institutes and Scholarships

Chinese Regime Courts Africa With Confucius Institutes and Scholarships

    Monday, February 11, 2013   No comments

By Jenny Li

Africa

In a move that critics say is meant to increase Chinese influence over Africa, the Chinese regime has plans to hand out thousands of scholarships to residents of the continent, while setting up dozens of Confucius Institutes—educational centers that have been criticized for promoting Party ideology and revisionist history.

The Chinese Communist Party announced a three-year “African Talents Plan” in July, which aims to train around 30,000 Africans and give out 18,000 government-sponsored scholarships, according to Party mouthpiece Xinhua.

The announcement was first made by Hu Jintao, the Party chief, and included a $20 billion line of credit to African nations for investment in infrastructure, agriculture, and manufacturing. 

A conference was recently held in Stellenbosch, a city of South Africa, to “draw the blueprint for future development” of Confucius Institutes across the continent. 

Confucius Institute Director-General Xu Lin proclaimed that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has founded 31 of its schools in 26 African countries, with some that grant accredited degrees in those countries.

But behind the generosity is a plan to garner influence, according to Chinese dissidents and critics of the regime.

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US Should Defuse Tensions With Iran, China

US Should Defuse Tensions With Iran, China

    Thursday, January 10, 2013   No comments

...

Meanwhile, in East Asia, maritime disputes between China and its neighbours regarding contested island chains in the South China Sea and East China Sea have become increasingly hostile and contentious. The White House should also use its foreign policy capital to alleviate the security dilemma between Washington and Beijing that lurks in the background of these ongoing disputes and is helping to fuel them.

In concrete terms, it should announce both an indefinite cessation of arms transfers to Taiwan and a moratorium on US surveillance flights within China’s 200-mile Exclusive Economic Zone, and temporarily suspend all joint military exercises in the Asia-Pacific. It must also return to the previous US policy of strict non-intervention in the various maritime sovereignty disputes in East and Southeast Asia, and pressure its regional allies at the centre of those disputes, namely Japan and the Philippines, to cease engaging in coercive diplomacy towards China.

Neither Iran’s uranium enrichment programme nor China’s sovereignty claims over uninhabited islands in East and Southeast Asia represent a grave or imminent threat to US national security. Both Iran and China are militarily weak and economically underdeveloped countries that are almost entirely surrounded by US allies and strategic partners. A precipitate war against either state would roil international financial markets and push America’s already fragile economy and overstretched military to the breaking point.

By contrast, the careful conciliation of both states would reduce the risk of war and facilitate the realisation of negotiated solutions to Iran’s nuclear programme and China’s maritime claims. Even more importantly, it would enable the administration to concentrate on rebuilding the economic sinews of US power in order to confront more severe geopolitical threats in the decades to come.

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President Asif Ali Zardari, at UNGA, 25 September 2012

President Asif Ali Zardari, at UNGA, 25 September 2012

    Wednesday, September 26, 2012   No comments

President Asif Ali Zardari, at UNGA, 25 September 2012

ASIF ALI ZARDARI, President of Pakistan, said his country had gone above and beyond the call of duty in fulfilling its international responsibilities. It had consistently been among the top contributors of troops to United Nations peacekeeping operations for many years, and today, more than 10,000 of its forces wore the blue helmets in the service of people around the world. Furthermore, Pakistan’s election to the Security Council reflected its commitment to world peace and security, as well as the international community’s vote of confidence. The United Nations represented common aspirations for peace and development, but it needed reform, he said. It must become more democratic and accountable. The legitimate aspirations of any people should be accommodated peacefully and in a manner consistent with sovereignty and territorial integrity, he said, adding that Pakistan supported the right of the Palestinian people to an independent State and to the admission of Palestine as a full member of the United Nations.

He recalled the loss of more than 7,000 soldiers and policemen, over 37,000 civilians, and several Government officials, including Pakistan’s first elected female Prime Minister and his wife, Benazir Bhutto, to extremism. Terrorism and extremism had destroyed human lives, torn the country’s social fabric, and devastated its economy, he said, adding that he was present not to answer, but to ask questions on behalf of his people whose lives had been lost to terrorism. Turning to Afghanistan, he said Pakistan’s doors had been open to its Afghan brothers and sisters but it had been left to fend for itself and its Afghan guests. Recalling the dictatorial regimes that were responsible for suffocating and throttling Pakistan, its institutions and its democracy, he called attention to the judicial execution of Pakistan’s first elected leader, Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, the jailing of other elected leaders, the 12 years he had himself spent in prison, and the billions provided by the international community to support those dictatorships.

The country’s social fabric and its very character had been altered, he said, adding that “our condition today is a product of dictatorships”. No country and no people had suffered more than Pakistan in the struggle against terrorism. How much more suffering could it endure? Describing how democracy had brought about major changes in his country, he listed the completion of a full five-year term by the first civilian Government in Pakistan’s 66-year history; the passage of unprecedented reforms by Parliament; the restoration of the 1973 consensus Constitution; and the establishment of the National Commission on Women, the National Commission on Human Rights, and a truly Independent Election Commission to ensure free, fair and transparent elections. The media were free and uncensored and civil society was flourishing under the protection of democracy, he said. Millions of families had also benefited from the Benazir Income Support Programme, the first social safety net created with the support of Pakistani women, for the weak and less privileged. It had not only helped the poor, but also empowered women in their households, he said.

As evidence of its cooperation with other countries in the region, he said Pakistan had begun to engage at all levels of the Afghan political spectrum. Believing in a sovereign, stable and secure Afghanistan, he said “what is good for the Afghan people is good for Pakistan”. He stressed the need for the international community to support the 3 million Afghan refugees in his country, so they could return home with dignity. Similarly, Pakistan’s relations with India, based on mutual trust and communication, were growing, he said, adding that he had been was encouraged by his discussions with the Prime Minister of India, with whom he had met last month in Tehran — their fifth meeting in four years. On the territorial dispute between the two countries, he stressed Pakistan’s continuing support for the right of the people of Jammu and Kashmir peacefully to choose their destiny, in accordance with the Security Council’s long-standing resolutions on that matter. Kashmir remained a symbol of the failures of the United Nations system rather than its strengths, he said, emphasizing that the resolution of those issues could only be reached in an environment of cooperation. To further build regional cooperation, Pakistan would be hosting a quadrilateral summit next month, and signing the Afghan-Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement, he said.