NO THIRD Party
| Date :24-Jul-2019 |
THAT India promptly denied that Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi ever asked United States President Mr. Donald Trump to mediate on Kashmir, was a given. For, there has been no reason whatsoever for India to make such a request that runs counter to India’s avowed diplomatic policy. There are reasons, however, to believe that Pakistan Prime Minister Mr. Imran Khan may have made a request to Mr. Donald Trump to initiate mediation with India, during their recent meeting in Washington DC. At this particular stage, it is not difficult to understand the discomfiture of Pakistan.
It is common knowledge that Islamabad is finding itself cornered from all sides and is trying to wriggle out of the tight spot. One of the ways could be a fresh effort to initiate talks with India, which India has halted since 2016 Pathankot terror strike. Hence the reported request to Mr. Trump by Mr. Khan to break the deadlock with India. Obviously, Pakistan is faltering and therefore seeking some solace. Recent events have proved beyond doubt that the Indian stand has its own validity and solidity and the world is recognising the reality. In sharp contrast, Pakistan has found itself in a no-win situation because of its unholy sponsorship of terrorism as a tool of State policy.
In the past quarter of a century, the world has come to realise the ugly designs of Islamabad and its complicity in terror. Slowly and patiently, India has built a narrative explaining clearly how the world has suffered from terror and how combating it should be a common global challenge. In this narrative, Pakistan stands out as a clear villain, a position which no country is willing to accept. In fact, the world has come to treat to Pakistan as a very important point of terror-sponsorship not just against India but also against many other countries. With its patient diplomacy over time, India has been able to convince the world about the rightness of its approach to issues with Pakistan. Time and again, the United States also has agreed that India has a valid point to make when it refuses to engage in talks with Pakistan. It is against this background that the reported interest Mr. Trump has shown in initiating mediation with between India and Pakistan appears to have no sense.
Yet, Mr. Imran Khan is still pushing a possible engagement with India. This eagerness, actually, can be interpreted as an unease in Islamabad about the freeze in the bilateral relations between the two neighbours. In international realpolitik, such a condition is often thought to be an indicator of weakening of Islamabad’s position with respect to India and the world. Internally, a negative opinion is building in Islamabad about Mr. Imran Khan. Intellectuals and scholars of international affairs realise how India has been strengthening its position in the world and how Pakistan is slipping on that count. There is an appreciation in Pakistan about India’s growing strength on all counts.
A silent realisation, too, is emerging in Pakistan that New Delhi has no reason to seek anybody’s mediation with Islamabad. This is a major reason of the unease Mr. Khan is reported to be feeling. In sharp contrast, India’s growing economic presence, its ever-expanding market for global merchandise, its solid development as a regional military power and its ability to take care of its own issues without any outside help has come to the world notice in the most authentic manner.
Obviously, Mr. Modi is aware fully of the strength he has been building in India’s diplomatic endeavours. At such a stage, it is totally illogical even to think that Mr. Modi ever asked Mr. Trump to mediate with Pakistan. Of course, in diplomacy, such ploys are used to make a start, which perhaps Mr. Trump may be doing. For Mr. Modi, there is no need to fall prey to those tactics. Seen in this light, New Delhi’s prompt denial of mediation offers by Mr. Trump makes great sense.