Geopolitics

A World without Pakistan will be more peaceful
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Issue Net Edition | Date : 15 Dec , 2019

Understanding the region from the Indus River to the Syrian-Turkish border is not always easy.  Convoluted by thousands of years of history, including boasting the world’s first great power – the Persian Empire – and running through Shia and Sunni regions in what was once partly Buddhist, partly Zoroastrian, influenced strongly by the Aryan Vedic cult, intersecting with the Jewish faith, and spanning the ancient Indus and Babylonian civilizations – this region is now massively messed up instead of being at the forefront of advancing civilization through its wealth of accumulated wisdom.  To add to its strategic importance, the region has strong deposits of mineral oil that have the potential to upset the world economy, but which is accompanied by acerbic and fundamental versions of aggressive Islamists that make reconciliation with the people in this region quite difficult.

…a world without Pakistan will be a much more peaceful world, and it is high time that the USA hitched its wagon to India to fight terrorism, rather than feed terrorism by riding with Pakistan.

The Western powers know that if they leave this region to itself, it is likely to fall a victim to the strongest powers in the region – a possibly resurgent Russia and irredentist China seeking world hegemony.  Indeed, China ever so slowly wants to reconnect to the Middle East through its new land and sea silk routes.  Those who can control the Middle East can control the Suez Canal and the trade route through the Strait of Hormuz from where 30% of the world’s seaborne-traded oil flows.

Historical Factors 

That terrorism should touch this vital region for the present civilization is a matter of concern, although a destabilized middle east gives the western powers an excuse to intervene when they would not have an excuse otherwise.  On the other hand, a quiet and peaceful middle east gives the bear and the dragon reason to invade and occupy the countries there.  It should not be forgotten that the Mongols, who ruled from Inner Mongolia in what is now Northern China controlled the Middle East at one time; Russia got halted in its great game march southwards after the Panjdeh incident south of Amu Darya, which rang alarm bells in London and Calcutta, and made a militarily powerful Great Britain warn Russia of further consequences.  Though Russia had a desire to invade Persia, it found it tough to do so at that time, even though Persia was weak, because the diplomatic overtones and warnings of Britain were too ominous for Russia.  Great Britain remedied the various influences in the Middle East during World War I, especially those of an Ottoman empire that was only a seasonal friend of Britain in contrast to being a perennial friend, by using largely Indian troops in its Middle East campaigns.  The Indian currency subsequently ran in the Middle East, particularly in the Persian Gulf, till 1955.

India’s Hobson’s Choice

However, the understanding we extract from all this is that a volatile Middle East gives meaning to the West to exert a presence there, and it is thus quite meaningful for them to ensure that the Middle East remains destabilized so as to exert an influence there, mainly because they can’t hope to do better for various reasons that include an ignorance of the culture and history of the people there.  Without its own strong resources, India faces a Hobson’s choice in the Middle East: either tolerate control there and fight fundamentalist Sunni terrorists who vow to reconquer Hindustan in the name of Islam, or tolerate hegemony in the Middle East and Indian Ocean by communist Russia and/or communist China, or allow the West a presence in the Middle East to curb Islamic violence.  For India, only the last option is meaningful, largely because the West and India share three very highly cherished values – democracy, freedom of religion, and the use of the English Common Law.

…the ISI has sponsored terrorism in Kashmir, Punjab, all across India, and continues to play a double-role with the USA vis-à-vis the Taliban is proof enough.

ISI and ISIS

But, it appears that the Sunni terrorists always find creative ways to assert their dominance.  Thus the nexus between the Sunnis of ISIS and the Sunnis of Pakistan and the Taliban run very deep, indeed, in a pan-Islamic dominion from the Indus to Kobane on the Syria-Turkish border.  The Taliban and ISI are a source of inspiration to the ISIS, not to mention a source of manpower support.  The ISI of Pakistan has, in itself, been a terrorist organization, and the bill is still ready in Washington DC to pronounce the ISI as a terrorist organization.  That bill can be taken up any day or at the opportune time – depending on the concessions the USA can get from the Pakistan government.  As a pun on the acronyms of ISI and ISIS, the ISIS is simply the plural of ISI.  When you have many ISIs together, you have ISIS!  The fact that the ISI has sponsored terrorism in Kashmir, Punjab, all across India, and continues to play a double-role with the USA vis-à-vis the Taliban is proof enough.  And, that the ISI is a government within a government in Pakistan speaks volumes to its secret influence.  In fact, it is not inconceivable that the ISI foments its own blasts and explosions in Pakistan merely to allow the Pakistan military to gain an upper hand in the internal politics of Pakistan.

But, what’s worse, the incendiary rhetoric of Islamism that reverberates through the Middle East finds its root philosophy in the madrasas of Pakistan, supported by Wahhabi Islam and the ISI.  Lately, the ISIS and ISI have come to a meeting of the minds that Hindostan needs to be taken over by Islam once again.  A sleeping Hindu-dominant political machinery in India is slow to move against these problems for fear of appearing internally discriminatory.  Thus, no country is on as shaky a ground as India, and no country in the world has as much to lose to Islamic terrorism than India, which already has a very strong Islamic base established in India.

The Road to ISIS Goes Through ISI

With ISI and ISIS having teamed up to create potential havoc in India, what with the thousands of sleeper cells, billions of dollars spent in madrasas, including for 1200 madrasas on the India-Bangladesh border, and many more billion dollars for preaching Wahhabi Islam to people of Indian origin and gaining converts, particularly from the backward castes, India is in a very precarious position.  But, a strong supporter of ISIS is the ISI, which provides support in tactics and intelligence to them.  Should the ISI fade away or collapse, ISIS will be minimized.  Thus, it must be recognized that the road to combating ISIS runs through ISI.  Correspondingly, the road to the elimination of ISIS runs through Pakistan.  Further, if Pakistan is eliminated, all the terrorism in the world will be down to less than an estimated 10% its present level.

…if Pakistan is eliminated, all the terrorism in the world will be down to less than an estimated 10% its present level.

Funding Pakistan Means Playing with Fire

In this regard, Gen Raheel Sharif’s visit to the USA with the hope of attracting increased funding for Pakistan’s military operations against terrorism in Pakistan is an effort to throw more dust in the eyes of a partially blind USA.  Any funding to combat terrorism in Pakistan will automatically go to a great extent to the ISI.  Hence, what Gen Sharif doesn’t realize is that at least there are some in the world who can see through his game plan who realize that funding Pakistan to combat terrorism is really to fund terrorism.  But, whether he can make a fool of the partly foolish, yet powerful USA is another story.  He may succeed just as his predecessors have succeeded in making a fool of the USA time and time again.  Recall how the ISI masterminded the attack on US military convoys in Baluchistan, blaming it on the Taliban, and then extracted concessions from the USA for its military program.  It is high time that the USA realized that funding Pakistan at all is playing with fire.  Perhaps, the USA can be made to re-evaluate its position, now that President Obama, who made a strategic mistake by withdrawing all US troops from Iraq, will attend India’s next Republic Day Parade.

Conclusion: A World Without Pakistan Will Be Peaceful

Should the USA wish to put out the fires in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Middle East, it should fund India, instead.  Every penny it gives to Pakistan must be redirected to India four-fold to help its fight against terrorism.  Money given to India to combat Islamic terrorism will be money well spent.  Finally, efforts by USA to rid itself of Pakistan altogether will be efforts in the right direction.  In other words, a world without Pakistan will be a much more peaceful world, and it is high time that the USA hitched its wagon to India to fight terrorism, rather than feed terrorism by riding with Pakistan.  An India in control of Pakistan and the Northwest regions of Pakistan will be able to check the Taliban and the proliferating underground arms bazaars of Peshawar.  Export of hashish – the financial power of the Taliban — can be checked closer to its source, and the connection between crime and terrorism throughout the world that has its origin in the border areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan can be more closely monitored.  The world has an opportunity to recover from the last two decades of extreme terrorism, but only by deciding and then taking action to ensure that Pakistan should cease to exist as a nation.  This choice is not easy, but the alternatives are tougher.

First Published in September 2015.

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The views expressed are of the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions or policies of the Indian Defence Review.

About the Author

Dr Amarjit Singh

is an independent security analyst.

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12 thoughts on “A World without Pakistan will be more peaceful

  1. My question is what do you really mean by “…if Pakistan is eliminated, all the terrorism in the world will be down to less than an estimated 10% its present level.”

    What is your definition of elimination?

    If Pakistan becomes an ungovernable territory similar to Somali-land, all that would mean is that their present resemblance to democracy will become redundant.

    It would then become an anarchic state with Jihadi elements running the basic necessities of life. They will control everything from foodgrains to water supply for its 220 million people.

    Next door to Pakistan is Afghanistan which is another ungovernable state. No country is interested in taking over Pakistan’s territory. Even China has walked out of that mess.

    So, what you’re wishing for will eventually create problems for India. We will have a highly unstable Neighbour next door. The problems in that rogue state will not be contained to its borders. They will spill over to India.

    I am just curious what is the strategy of Mr. Jaishankar and other bigwigs in our government to contain the problem should it get out of control?

    I think wishing for a Pakistani collapse will hurt India more than any other nation. That territory acts as a BUFFER STATE for India. Otherwise, we’d have Taliban in Afghanistan as our neigjbours. Even the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa region is very dangerous and lawless. Imagine all those problems crossing over to this side of the Wagah border. Can we handle it?

    Right now I’m seeing a lot of news trends about Pakistan’s collapse. But noone in India’s power circles seems to have a clue on how to control any possible damage to India.

    In the worst scenario, I anticipate a full-fledged war. As the Pakistanis will have nothing left to lose, they will divert their attention to Kashmir. However, India will suffer because we have a stable nation, and a high standard of living to protect. Our economy depends on trade with the Middle-East, Australia, South-East Asia, China, and EU/USA.

  2. Pakistan was created by the West, the Middle Eastern Nations & China to enslave India. Getting rid of Pakistan also means that the West, the Middle East and China should also be done at the same time. If you eliminate the source of the problem the problem will disappear. It is not good to think of Pakistan as in independent entity.

  3. These are flights of fancies of the naive. Pakistan is a country having its defined territory, people and government. Can you make it disappear from the face of earth? No. Can you dismember it? Perhaps yes. Just as the British dismembered India to create Pakistan in 1947 or just as the people of east pakistan decided to break themselves off from what was pakistan in 1971. But that way why just pakistan almost any country under the sun can be dismembered given certain conditions within and the strength of certain adversaries outside. The moot point is can such dismemberment solve the problems to solve which dismemberment is contemplated in the first place? Answer is ‘No’. It only multiplies the problems as has happened in the case of the new state born out of pakistan’s dismemberment in the east.
    What then is the solution? The solution is to support the silent majority within Pakistani civil society which is as sensible in Pakistan as in any other ciuntry including India and help it entrust state piwer to elements sober and saner than the present mullah military combine. That is not an impossible task thogh it is made difficult by the likes of our sanghis and America’s trumpys who do not want to acknowledge that saner elements exust even in a Muslim majority country. The day the world gets rid of this unwarranted rigidity the problem will be solved in a win win manner for all.

  4. Almost 50% Pakistanis have been radicalised, how will world deal with such elements. It is easier said then done, can world get rid of 100 million potential terrorists from the face of earth. Most terrorist groups have covert support of Saudis, who are allies of the US. We know that Obama has a soft corner for Islamists.

  5. Mr. Singh What drugs u r on ? I mean which drug do u do before writing all these articles ?

    We both had and still have a difficult relationship but rather than trying to solve (from both sides) if you or anyone believe that you can wipe out Pakistan form the map…. is just not possible, kind of mad man’s dream but obviously dreams doesn’t cost much so you can keep on dreaming 🙂

    May be may be we all start thinking how we can resolve the differences and try to create an atmosphere in which we all can live peacefully.. We have almost wasted on generation fighting may be We the young generation can try to change the things.

    • Pak
      Have you forgotten 1971 war?. You lost East Pakistan( present Bangladesh ). Why did you loose? They were not happy with West Pakistani rulers. Similarly people like you should have the courage to create an up surge against the Army rule. Without the help of the local people no country can occupy other country using army. It will not last long. Sri Rama is the only king who had not used his army to fight against Ravana. Sri Rama was fully aware that without the support of local people or the general public no king can fight a war against enemy even if it is a Dharma Yudh. These Vanaras were the local tribes in that area and he found that they are more capable than His Army. Not only that Rishi Valmiki showed the world 5000 years back that there are people with looks like monkey. After killing Ravana He gave power to Vibhishana ,who was a noble man. Now take the case of 1971 war. We could win the hearts of the Bangladesh people and later on gave power to the most popular leader there. See the other wars which America fought ,like in Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq.. In all these places they installed a puppet Govt. and tried to rule from outside. But India did not do it. We left to the people. Same thing India can do in the case of Pakistan. Everything with in the hands of the people.

  6. A corner stone of US winning the cold war against Russia was to bankrupt Russia by engaging them in expensive weapon development programs while blocking trade and economic benefits. It worked and will work with Pakistan. Let China and Saudi Arabia underwrite this bankrupt state. Since China is showing adversarial behavior India must began to throttle down 60 billion dollar trade with China in retaliation for it’s funding an enemy next door. Similarly India must send out warnings to other countries including Russia to stop aiding India’s mortal enemy, lest they want to be in a unfavored relationship . The price to pay is the potential loss of trade benefits with the fifth largest economy in the world which is fast moving to become one of the top three. Increasingly the world is moving towards trade and economics as the biggest influencer of good citizenship. War is an obsolete idea with or without nuclear weapons other than minor border skirmishes. Pakistan knows it cannot use nuclear weapons against India, no matter what, because the retaliation from India will assure total destruction of that nation. The economic reality is a biting issue at individual level and will someday result in an overthrow of the Pakistani military by the civilians, a sort of coup in the opposite direction..a dream of course.

    • Buddy thanks for writing all that up I was thinking of the same thing, how badly the Saudi’s treat Pakistani’s and then it hit me. They just throw peanuts on Pakistan and it keeps eating em up. Pakistan has no sight of the future all it’s see’s is the stalemate it is in and the terrorism that it contains.

  7. all world knows indians are decivers(makar)as americans wanted oil of middle east> indian wanted fertile land of Pakistan and Pakistan Arabian sea> indian intelligence raw who introduced terrorism in asia> world community just take example of sri lanka> how raw waponized tamaal taigers and spread terrorism in sri lanka.> this Raw who gave weapons and funds to Pakistani Taliban who made 100s of attacks on pakisrtani civilian> if world community wants proof> Pakistan has proof>actually indians has started war against Pakistan since Pakistan got freedom>this is fact we are ready with our 900 nuclear and hydrogen bombs to complete thje agenda of lord of universe before the kiyamat.

  8. Also read :

    ‘Strategic, Methodological and Developmental Importance of Knowledge Consumption in Countering Religious Terrorism and Fundamentalism and Ensuring Peace and Development’ marketoracle.co.uk/Article48326.html

    Countering Terrorism And Fundamentalism With The Ancient Indian Wisdom …
    marketoracle.co.uk/Article48471.html

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