Opinion
On February 16, 2016, two leading Asian newspapers published opposing stories on bilateral talks. The Hindustan Times quoted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s Special Assistant on Foreign Affairs Mr Tariq Fatemi that Pakistan was ‘ready to forge cooperative relations with India’. On the other hand, a report by Dawn quoted India’s new High Commissioner to Pakistan Mr Gautam Bambawale saying that the dialogue between both countries would resume ‘once the atmosphere
Over the past few years, we’ve heard news about army operations and Intelligence-Based Operations (IBOs) in KP, Balochistan and Sindh but when it comes to Punjab, the news are either too low or almost all of them talk about covert IBOs. To date, Punjab has never faced any military operation. This exception is not legitimize demands for one anew, but rather to question the motive behind not targeting dangerous militant
Pakistan Armed Forces are fighting an “amorphous” enemy, as former army chief General Kayani used to say. This enemy manifests itself in various forms, at various places and through a variety of mediums. Operation Zarb-e-Azb will complete its second year in coming June and the National Action Plan (NAP) promulgated by the political-military leaders will also complete its second year in December. A key question being asked by observers, analysts
To begin this article with Iqbal’s quote; Khudi ko kar buland itna ke har taqder se pehle Khuda bande se ye poche bata teri raza kia hai (Raise thyself to such heights, That God Himself may Ask — What do you wish me to write your fate?) ISPR has made a very comprehensive statement regarding the retirement of Army Chief at the end of his tenure, thus leaving us to witness
The standoff between two diametrically-opposed ideological regimes in Riyadh and Tehran can be defused if neutral countries like Pakistan and Oman together make concerted efforts to reduce the level of distrust and misconceptions between two important Muslim states which rank among the world’s top ten oil-producing countries. Related: Regional Geosectarianism and Role of Pakistan Historically, Pakistan has tried its best to balance its fragile relationships between Iran and Saudi Arabia.
Pak-Afghan ties have always been paralyzed by the cross border insurgency movements and the blame game on state level. However, the hostile relations between the two countries have a viable historical background which set the framework for the prevailed situation. Relationship between the two countries started right after the independence of Pakistan. Unfortunately due to Durand line issue which is the border between the two countries, Afghan government was not
On January 2, 2016, a group of 5 heavily-armed terrorists attacked the Indian Air Force (IAF) base in Pathankot, Punjab, killing 7 security personnel including a serving Lt Col of the Indian Army. India’s hyper-sensationalist media once again jumped to conclusions, with each news outlet quoting its own ‘high ranking’ anonymous sources giving their own differing versions of the incident. Some said it was carried out by Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) whereas
We live in precarious times. The advent of the Internet was meant to promote the concept of a ‘global village’ but alas, here too the elements of hatred, hostility and strife spared no opportunity to spread discord and discontent rampaging across the Muslim world. With the emergence of two radically opposing sub-factions within Islam (Wahhabi and Shia schools of thought) emerged fault lines which were otherwise hidden from the public
The cause of Pakistan’s long term sufferance at the hands of ignorant media persons is long debated and analysed. There is absolutely no doubt that the very reason Pakistanis have been subjugated for so long is, other Pakistanis. The thing that is unfortunately yet to be realised is when people turn against their own country under the influence of some twisted attention seeking tactics, they break the very system that
On December 21, Mr Sartaj Aziz, the octogenarian Adviser to Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif on Foreign Affairs, issued a detailed statement before the Senate of Pakistan on ‘Foreign Policy of Pakistan: Achievements and Challenges’. Mr Aziz highlighted the difficult challenges Pakistan has faced as a member of the world community while also mentioning what he said were the current government’s ‘achievements’ on this crucial domain. Before I embark
