Pakistan’s peace efforts in Iran have more credence now
Iranian foreign minister Jawad Zarif’s visit to Islamabad should be viewed in the context of rising tensions in the Gulf and Iran’s bid to garner regional support for de-escalation. The country has been put on notice for fresh sanctions and its emotional response has brought a US aircraft carrier, B-52 bombers and amphibious war vehicles to the scene.
In an attempt to overturn Iran’s isolation by explaining its position to regional countries, Zarif visited Turkmenistan, Iraq, China, Russia and India before he arrived in Pakistan.
This was the foreign minister’s tenth visit to Pakistan since he took the office six years ago, and he met with the top Pakistani civilian and military brass who told him to avoid conflict with the US and improve relations with its Gulf neighbors.
One reason for this is Pakistan’s own improving ties with the US of late, and its excellent relations with Saudi Arabia, whereby Islamabad can indeed play a constructive role in the promotion of peace and mutual tolerance.
While Zarif was in Islamabad, President Donald Trump indicated he was sending more US troops to the Gulf region.
Pakistan made its feelings clear: that a US decision to deploy aircraft carriers and bombers added to an existing precarious security situation in the Middle East. This reflected Islamabad’s fears that a foreign military intervention in Iran could send large numbers of refugees to its neighboring countries — Pakistan included — and would be counter-productive as US military interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq have been in the past.
For his part, Zarif offered up tempting linkages between Pakistan’s Gwadar and Iran’s Chahbahar ports and said Pakistan could use Iranian rail links to trade with Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Russia. So far, Pakistan’s overland trade with these nations is inhibited by unstable conditions in Afghanistan. Whether Pakistan will take this offer seriously, remains to be seen. It will depend on trade potential and freight benefits.
But it is border security issues which have been perennial in Pakistan-Iran relations in recent years. This is largely due to a long porous border between the two countries and the same tribes living on both sides.
Pakistan-Iran relations have oscillated between engagement and estrangement post-1979 with Iran continuously objecting to Pakistan’s closeness with the US (which is no longer the case).
Javed Hafeez
Escape routes in a sparsely populated area are easily available and all kinds of smuggling thrives. Under an old agreement, tribes separated by the border have easement rights. This means they can move freely back and forth for a specified distance.
In a case that illustrates the difficulties of policing the area, a few months ago, a number of Iranian Revolutionary Guards were abducted and brought over to Pakistan. This issue was discussed by Zarif with his Pakistani counterparts, and both sides vowed to implement existing agreements regarding border security.
Pakistan-Iran relations have oscillated between engagement and estrangement post-1979 with Iran continuously objecting to Pakistan’s closeness with the US (which is no longer the case). In Afghanistan, both sides supported divergent groups in the 90’s and of late, Iran has been trying to mend fences with the Afghan Taliban.
Interestingly, Iran’s main ally in the region, India, has now developed a strategic understanding with the US with a view to containing China. So the situation has become more opaque. Pakistan-Iran divergence on the US, India and Afghanistan has narrowed, and this lends real space to Pakistan’s peace efforts.
Pakistan is not in a position to extend any military support to Tehran for the simple reason that it is determined to stay away from such conflicts. It can play a role only in a diplomatic capacity which, it appears, is already underway. Escalation in this highly sensitive and strategically important region can wreck global peace and the international economy and any Pakistani efforts to diffuse the situation should, therefore, be positively received.
– Javed Hafeez is a former Pakistani diplomat with much experience of the Middle East. He writes weekly columns in Pakistani and Gulf newspapers and appears regularly on satellite TV channels as a defense and political analyst.
Twitter: @hafiz_javed
