Pakistan-Saudi Arabia relations: Building on firm foundations
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Inter-state relations usually are based on commonality of interests, supplemented by strategic, economic and cultural expedients. Leadership and governments give political expression to the degree of warmth and hone in their respective policies to advance shared goals and objectives. This implies that depending on developments in the regional and global environment and consequent vacillation in national priorities, the tone and tenor of relations may change over time.
In the case of Pakistan, there are few relations that have been based over and above transitory considerations of self interest alone. Notable is the depth and special character of Pakistan’s relations with Saudi Arabia.
Rooted in the hearts and mind of the people, the Pakistani-Saudi ties have been constant and steadfast. A source of strength for both countries and serving their respective interests in a partnership that transcends the trends of time.
Saudi Arabia is for each Pakistani a holy land. For centuries, much before the creation of Pakistan, Muslims would long to visit the holy places — the two Harams in Makkah and Medina — and spend their lifelong savings to fulfill their dream of Hajj or Umrah.
Travelers from Arabia would be cordially received and given high place of honor for they belonged to the land of the Prophet Muhammad. Islamic faith provided the deep and enduring spiritual connection between the people of the two countries. Saudi Arabia over the past 70 years remained true and sincere to the wellbeing of the people of Pakistan and to the defense of its security and independence.
Similarly, Pakistan always fulfilled its solemn commitment to the defense of Saudi Arabia and the holy places of Islam. Millions of Pakistani expatriates have contributed to the development of Saudi Arabia and in turn benefitted their families by sending their earnings back home to their towns and villages.
On the Kashmir issue, it is important to have in-depth consultations to see how best to support the Kashmiris. It is true that the Indian market has many attractions for the world and Pakistan is not interested in building an Islamic alliance against India. But it is certainly justified in ensuring its own security and national independence.
Salman Bashir
Both countries have stood together rock solid for Islamic causes all over the world. The Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), of which Pakistan is a founding member, encapsulated the aspirations of the Muslims of the world to unite their strengths and expertise for the welfare and wellbeing of humanity. The OIC with its secretariat in Jeddah has played a pivotal role in coordinating efforts of its member states, including at the United Nations and other multilateral institutions.
The high ideals to which both Pakistan and Saudi Arabia subscribe are being tested in present times by the unraveling of the world order and particularly the devastation of vast tracts of Islamic lands in North Africa and the Middle East. Similarly, in South Asia, the Muslims of India and the people of Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir find themselves between the hammer and anvil. India has assumed a draconian dimension with Hindutva extremism. Unfortunately, Muslim states and societies have been late in assessing the threats that they have been exposed to and therefore have not been able to define responses adequate to the need of times.
The OIC, like other international organizations, has not been able to adequately upgrade its point of view and seek more effective ways and means to serve the Muslim community. It is therefore imperative that Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and other key members of the OIC pool in their efforts to bring more realism to their deliberations and find more effective means to support each other. These are, once again, defining moments that will shape the 21st-century world.
On the Kashmir issue, it is important to have in-depth consultations to see how best to support the Kashmiris. It is true that the Indian market has many attractions for the world and Pakistan is not interested in building an Islamic alliance against India. But it is certainly justified in ensuring its own security and national independence.
Saudi Arabia has been helpful in this regard. The age of bloc politics is over. It is futile to practice diplomacy in the old mode. Globalization is a reality that has already erased financial, commercial and communication frontiers. Pragmatism imbued by high ideals and clarity of vision demands drawing up new agendas and building upon time-tested, rock-solid ties between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.
– Salman Bashir is a Pakistani diplomat who served as Foreign Secretary of Pakistan and as High Commissioner of Pakistan to India.
Twitter: @Salman_B_PK
