Pakistan urges ‘calm thinking’ on ties with India as new Modi cabinet takes oath
ISLAMABAD: A day after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his newly elected cabinet ministers were sworn in as lawmakers, Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar on Tuesday called for “calm reflection” on the future of Islamabad’s tense ties with India.
Modi and members of the Council of Ministers were sworn in as lawmakers during the inaugural session of the Indian Lower House on Monday. India and Pakistan are nuclear-armed neighbors that have fought three wars, but ties have remained tense since August 2019, when India stripped the disputed state of Jammu and Kashmir of its autonomy.
India and Pakistan claim the entire Himalayan region but only control parts of it, and have fought two wars over the disputed territory since gaining independence from British colony India in 1947.
Pakistan has soured on ties with India after it stripped Kashmir of its autonomy and halted trade with the neighbour in 2019. Islamabad has said it will not normalise ties with India unless it reverses its controversial decision, a charge India rejects.
“In our view, as the BJP-led NDA government begins its new term, it is time for a calm reflection on the future of India-Pakistan relations and cross-cutting issues affecting the entire region,” Dar said at an event in Islamabad.
The deputy prime minister said relations between Pakistan and India have historically remained troubled, but added that Islamabad does not believe in permanent hostility.
“We seek good neighbourly relations with India based on mutual respect, sovereign equality and a just and peaceful resolution of the long-standing Jammu and Kashmir dispute,” he said.
While Pakistan is always open to constructive engagement through dialogue to resolve outstanding issues, Dar said Islamabad will never agree to India’s “unilateral approach” or attempts to impose hegemony in the region.
“We will take all necessary steps to maintain strategic stability in South Asia and will respond effectively and decisively to the reckless military missteps of the Indian government’s Hindu nationalism,” it warned.
A ‘pragmatic’ approach to Afghanistan
Dar spoke about Pakistan-Afghanistan relations and hoped that in Afghanistan’s interest, Kabul would realise that it would be in its interest to take necessary practical steps to address Islamabad’s concerns.
Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have deteriorated since the Afghan Taliban took over Kabul in 2021. Pakistan has seen a surge in militant attacks on its western provinces bordering Afghanistan. Islamabad has accused Kabul of harboring militants who launch attacks on its territory, a charge Afghanistan has consistently denied.
“Since the establishment of the Taliban government in August 2021, Pakistan has adopted a pragmatic approach focused on practical cooperation aimed at averting a humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and promoting the welfare of 40 million Afghan people,” Dar noted.
On ties with China, the Vice Premier said the two countries have recently agreed to upgrade the flagship China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project and the coming years will see a focus on industrialisation, digitalisation, green transition agriculture and people-to-people exchanges.
The Chinese government is investing more than $65 billion in energy infrastructure projects in Pakistan as part of CPEC, a key component of its Belt and Road Initiative. The corridor will link China with the Arabian Sea and help modernize Pakistan’s economy through a network of roads, rail, pipelines and ports.
But attacks on Chinese nationals in Pakistan in the past few months have left Beijing concerned about the safety of its citizens in Pakistan.
“We will do everything in our power to ensure the safety and security of Chinese personnel and projects in Pakistan and protect CPEC from the machinations of hostile forces,” Dar vowed.
Dar said Pakistan was seeking to build deeper cooperation with Gulf countries, Turkey, Iran and Central Asian countries as Islamabad boosts foreign investment.
“Our main focus is to forge closer trade and investment ties and strengthen regional collaboration,” he explained. “In this regard, the Special Investment Promotion Council (SIFC) plays a key role,” he said, referring to a government body established last year to attract investments into key economic sectors of Pakistan.
