Will now there be sanctions on Pakistan too?
By Haider Abbas
The international community as well as India, had to be on tenterhooks, trying to decode the presence of Pakistan PM Imran Khan, in Moscow with Russian President Vladimir Putin on February 24, while Russia went to war against Ukraine, which had got invited after Ukraine permanent flirtations with Europe and NATO, and therefore, in order to pre-empt any such move by Ukraine towards NATO, made the war-coming. But, now the world is opening up to start to show its disdain against Pakistan after it has stuck most stringent sanctions on Russia.
It can easily be felt, that international establishments/ forces and intelligence agencies just could not gulp-down, as to what was Imran Khan doing at such a juncture? Which he also likened to “exiting time to be in Russia”, the moment he landed at Moscow, despite the US pressure to abandon the tour. The anti-Pakistan response had to first echo from one of the leading news outlet from Britain, through its Daily Mail 1 on March 1, in an article written by its Chief Reporter Martin Robinson, where he says, ‘Pakistan’s helping hand to warmonger Putin: Imran Khan shamelessly offers to import two million tons of wheat AND buy gas from Russia… just as Western sanctions are dealing devastating blow to its economy. Imran Khan signs a trade deal with Putin after Kremlin talks on the day that he ordered Ukraine invasion.’
The article continues to deliberate that, ‘ Pakistan today became the first major nation to back pariah Vladimir Putin as it signed the first new trade deal with Russia since the invasion of Ukraine. Prime Minister and former cricketer Imran Khan has said that his country will import about 2million tons of wheat and supplies of natural gas after meeting the Russian President last Thursday – the day he sent troops into its sovereign neighbour. Despite Russia facing international isolation and a raft of sanctions crippling its economy, Khan has defended potentially pumping billions into the Kremlin’s coffers saying Pakistan’s economic interests ‘required it’. He said of the two-day trip: ‘We went there because we have to import 2million tons of wheat from Russia. Secondly, we have signed agreements with them to import natural gas because Pakistan’s own gas reserves are depleting,’ Khan said, adding: ‘Inshallah (God willing), the time will tell that we have had great discussions’.
By now, when the war is into its ninth-day, the West is also equally convinced that Pakistan has tried to bolster Russian economy, which is reeling under the hardest ever sanctions imposed by EU and US alike. Europe and US also have sensed that if US was not to have withdrawn from Afghanistan, after twenty years of occupation, the war on Ukraine was never to have come, and who played the pivot in this war against US? The answer is obviously Pakistan, as it is an undeniable fact that Pakistan had provided every possible help to Afghan-Taliban for the ouster of US. It is also ironic that this war from Russia on Ukraine was ‘on the cards’ since a few years back, but to the deft diplomacy, Vladimir Putin, could not let US make any policy on this front, and hence, both NATO and US-who were allies against Afghanistan, were caught unawares, towards the Russian invasion on Ukraine, and have left Ukraine alone with only slapping of sanctions on Russian.
It is Pakistan which brought to the ‘leaving’ of US from Afghanistan and vows to stand by China in conflict with US, hence, Pakistan, will never be of any priority to US, which is what would be very suitable for India. Belarus, an ally of Russia has been put under sanctions and there are also symptoms of Pakistan to also follow the taste, which is again to suit for India.
However, there are also reports, as published in Daily Mail 2 on February 24, that China could come forward to limit the impact of the sanctions on Russia. It was reported on the very day when the attack was launched on Ukraine. It said, ‘Will China bail out Putin? Fears Beijing could take on the West by stepping in to buy Russian gas and oil and limit impact of financial sanctions as experts believe China could help Russia weather the storm of financial sanctions which could mean Beijing buying more Russian oil and gas and lending Moscow money.’ This stance from China had to come as earlier in February both the nations, at the Beijing Winter Olympics, had vowed to fight each-other wars, and where India had boycotted its presence as China had taunted India by making PLA Commander Qi Fabio, who was involved in Galwan Valley killing of 20 Indian soldiers on June 15, 2020, to be the its Olympic torch bearer, which obviously had not gone well with India. Pakistan was present at Beijing.
Apart from that, China has also signaled that it would rescue Russia fight the US sanctions and a ban to SWIFT banking system, by its Chinese alternative CIPS system. A news report published in CNBCTV18 3 said, ‘when Russian banks were banned from using the USD based SWIFT in response to the Ukraine invasion, Chinese media said the CIPS could work with Russia’s SPFS to counter the restrictions’. The US had also come to a rude shock when Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) had refused to divest Russia from OPEC-Plus, reported CNBCCTV18 4 in an open display of siding with Russia, instead to US, and likewise UAE, despite US pressure, abstained from voting against Russia at UN resolution condemning Russia aggression on Ukraine on March 1. India too had abstained. UAE, did not also lent an ear to US and has gone ahead to buy a dozen L-15 Chinese supersonic fighter aircrafts. UAE has been offered F-35 stealth fighter jets from US anew as it had cancelled its 23 billion USD deal with US and instead is said to have gone ahead with Chinese Huawei 5-G technology, reported Business Insider 5
Can it be construed that KSA and UAE recent decisions to the angst of US and pro-to Russia and China is a policy-shift from being once the strongest allies of US? But, what is surely to have perplexed US the most is what is the Indian position, which has refused to condemn Russia in the Ukrainian affair, despite BECA with India. India knows it very well that it cannot betray the Russian position as India is vulnerable to Russian technology and weaponry which is still around 70% of its arsenal.
What will be the outcome of the war is for the time to see, but thing which is getting more and more clearer is that there is a total policy disaster from US in practically all the spheres as of now. Lets also see how India will try to evade any adverse position and continue with its tight-rope-walking.
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The writer is a former UP State Information Commissioner and a political analyst.
References:
1- https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10563533/US-Europe-paying-Kremlin-1BILLION-DAY-oil-gas.html
2- https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10546499/Experts-say-China-help-Russia-weather-storm-Ukraine-sanctions.html
3- https://www.cnbctv18.com/world/russiaukraine-warcan-cips-chinas-potential-swift-competitor-help-russia-12673332.htm
4- https://www.cnbctv18.com/energy/explained-why-saudi-arabia-is-siding-with-russia-and-refusing-to-hike-oil-output-12531262.htm
5- https://www.businessinsider.in/defense/news/uae-suspends-23-billion-f-35-fighter-jet-deal-with-the-us-after-the-latter-frets-over-china-relationship/articleshow/88294485.cms