I think that Pakistan should try to build its ties with the Saudi Arabia further strong so that we can cash on our Prime Minister's relations with the Saudi family and try not to loose the only good quality or benefit that our respected Prime Minister has.
Furthermore, looking from the realist point of view I think that the rational behavior by the state of Pakistan would be to support its long term strategic ally, which is KSA not Iran. And now that our other strategic partners like Turkey and Egypt are also alleging their support to Saudi Arabia, it would be unwise of us to refrain from this war. We have a long history of assisting the the Arab countries militarily and it has resulted in good and sound relations with these oil rich Middle Eastern countries who have stood by us in every thick and thin, we must not deteriorate our relations with these countries.
As far as the evoking of the Shia sentiment is concerned, a state in my view should not consider the religious or sectarian sentiments of of its communities while taking decisions on the matters of international alignments. This does not in any sense mean that we should hurt the feelings of our Shia community (I am myself from the same community) but they should be taken into confidence before taking the decision and should be made cognizant of the possible implications of both type of the decisions. Relations with Iran would not exacerbate as long as our relations with them serve their economic purposes. Because it has remained under international sanctions for a very long time, it won't take any measures which would worsen its relations with a country like Pakistan for too long.
Thank you for the post and it's totally fine to disagree with me. Everyone has the right to their own opinion and I totally respect that.
ReplyDeleteNow in terms of a response to your piece, a few points. Realists do NOT believe in alliances. They view alliances with deep suspicion, since a friend today can be an enemy tomorrow. Hence, your bit on realism supporting a deeper alliance between SA & Pakistan misses the point. That being said, you can argue in support of a stronger alliance with Saudi Arabia from a non-realist perspective and still have an argument. Your argument does not have to be predicated on theory to still be an argument.
You talk about these allies sticking with us through thick and thin, but where has their support been in Zarb-e-Azb? Have they sent troops to support our military's battle against these radical extremists, many of whom have received support in the past from SA?
In terms of your point about the Shia, you have to remember that Saudi Arabia has been framing this as a sectarian conflict. By taking sides in a sectarian conflict, how does this benefit us?
Finally, who will pay all the bills for the war? What tangible benefits will we gain from intervention? What about the alternative costs - legal, moral, religious, etc. - that will accrue because of this intervention?