Islamabad: The two-day Envoys’ Conference Monday deliberated on
‘different aspects’ of the country’s foreign policy with special focus
on suggestions to review of relationship with the United States and
NATO, the Foreign Ministry sources said.
The conference is
considered significant as the civilian and military leadership have
decided to review its future relationship and terms of engagement with
the United States and its Western allies in the wake of the last month’s
unprovoked NATO attack on two border posts and killed 24 soldiers.
“We
are reviewing the terms of engagement with the NATO and the U.S,”
Foreign Ministry spokesman Abdul Basit said ahead of the conference.
Foreign
Minister Hina Rabbani Khar presided over the Conference and
Intelligence Chief Lt. Gen. Ahmad Shuja Pasha briefed the participants
about the NATO strikes on the first day of the deliberations, the
sources said.
Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC), General Khalid Shameem Wynne, also attended the conference.
Ambassadors
and High Commissioners from nearly 15 key capitals are participating in
the conference who are ‘deliberating on different aspects of Pakistan’s
foreign policy’ the sources said.
Pakistan’s
ambassador-designate to the U.S, and envoys from Afghanistan, Saudi
Arabia, Italy, Germany, Russia, Belgium and Thailand as well as the
ambassador to the US afre participating in the conference.
The
envoys’ conference was called after the US-led NATO fighter jets and
helicopters carried out what Pakistani leaders viewed as intentional
attack on two border posts in the country’s Mohmand tribal region,
bordering Afghanistan.
Political analyst Syed Mushahid Hussain
has said that Pakistan review of its foreign policy must focus on
maintaining good ties with all neighbours as attention is now diverting
to East from the West.
“The government should also address to
the aspirations of the people whole taking review of the foreign policy
and should not hide facts from own public,” Hussain said. He also said
the leadership should stop telling lie to the people.
Sources
said the Envoys Conference is mainly discussing Pakistan’s relations
with the U.S. and its Western allies in view of their threats,
Pakistan’s relations with Afghanistan especially after withdrawal of
foreign troops by 2014, relations with arch-rival India, and how to
further cement ties with neighbouring countries.
Islamabad
angrily reacted to the attack as the military leadership said the NATO
aircraft violated the ‘Red Lines’ clearly defined to the US/NATO and
ISAF forces in Afghanistan. Pakistan military says that NATO has carried
out 8 strikes on Pakistani posts in three years, killing 72 soldiers
and injuring dozens others.
The military and civilian leadership
rejected regrets from the U.S. and NATO leaders and the civilian
leaders preferred to review future relationship with the U.S. and NATO.
The government had been under tremendous internal pressure to review
relations with the US in the so-called anti-terror war, which has killed
nearly 35,000 civilians and 5000 security men in 10 years.
To
adopt harsh stand after the November 26 NATO strike, the government
closed supply line for NATO troops in Afghanistan and Prime Minister
Gilani said on Sunday that the supply line will remain shut for more
weeks.
In another major decision, Pakistan vacated the
strategically important airbase from the U.S. military in Balochistan
province. The U.S. military had used the Shamsi airbase for nearly 10
years and the last US flight took off from the airstrip on Sunday,
transferring its spy aircraft, equipment and personnel. Pakistan Army
Sunday issued video and photographs of the airbase, showing own troops
taking control and the departure of the final U.S. Air Force flight.
Foreign
Minister Hina Rabbani Khar says that recommendations of the Envoys’
Conference will be sent to the parliament for final approval. She said
Pakistan will chalk out foreign policy to ‘protect our national
sovereignty, territorial integrity’ and to ‘align it strictly with
Pakistan’s requirements for peace and development’.
Political
leaders, foreign affairs experts, former ambassadors, lawmakers, media,
members of the civil society in Pakistan are unanimous to call for
change in the country’s foreign policy with special reference to a
detailed review of relationship with the United States. Online
