'NOC to Raheel Sharif raises questions on Parliament's supremacy'

The permission given to former Army Chief General Raheel Sharif to lead the 39-member Islamic Military Alliance despite decision by the country's Parliament to remain neutral raises serious questions on the supremacy of the Parliament, said former Ambassador Ashraf Jehangir Qazi.
Qazi, Pakistan's former ambassador to the US who also served as the UN secretary-general special representative for Iraq in 2014, told a seminar that issuing a no-objection certificate (NoC) to General Raheel Sharif (Retd) to head the military alliance of the Islamic countries would have serious repercussions for the country's foreign policy.
"The permission that has been given to General Sharif by the military does raise serious questions especially when the Parliament through a unanimous resolution has already resolved to remain neutral in the conflict in Middle East," he said.
Later, he told reporters that the decision to allow Raheel Sharif to head the Saudi-led military alliance may make some of the Muslim countries unhappy, especially Iran which is a neighbouring country of Pakistan and is not included in the alliance. "Pakistan should reconcile within the Muslim world instead of taking sides and this was also resolved in the resolution passed by the joint sitting of the Parliament at a time when the conflict started in Yemen," Qazi added.
The seminar, titled 'US Foreign Policy and Trump Presidency: A Review and Outlook' was organised by Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI) in collaboration with the Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) COMSATS. Former Foreign Minister Inam-ul-Haq, while addressing the seminar as a chief guest, remarked that US President Donald Trump essentially wishes to restore American supremacy and mistakenly believes he can bring back jobs to the US and protect the economy from the onslaught of globalisation.
He said that the world is converging towards a very dangerous future for mankind as a whole and the international community is faced with many problems. While the elite are trying to maintain their status, the poor of the world are trying to claw out of the hunger and disease they have been consigned to for generations, he added.
Although it is early to assess as to what policy President Trump would adopt with regard to Pakistan, yet the country's assistance would continue to go down, he added. He further said that Pakistan's nuclear programme would remain in the focus as the US has never recognised Pakistan as a nuclear state.
Ambassador Khalid Mahmood (Retd), chairman board of governors of ISSI, in his remarks stated that the world was still reeling in the aftermath of the US elections - the rise of social and political divisions along racial lines are evidence of this and that Trump's ambivalent policies are only reinforcing existing fears and apprehensions.
Zahid Hussain, a senior analyst, in his presentation on 'South Asia: The Evolving Dimensions of US Foreign Policy and implications' stated that it was clear that pressure on Pakistan to fight militants will further increase, as will an escalation in drone strikes.
On the topic of discussion 'US-Pakistan Relations: Will Trump Embrace or Erase Obama's Foreign Policy?' Dr Talat Farooq, senior research fellow at ISSI, said the US foreign policy is less about personalities and more about geopolitical and strategic interests.
Even while playing the divisionary blame game by holding Pakistan responsible for the failures of the US and Afghan governments, she added that the Trump administration would continue to show restraint in isolating Pakistan.
Ambassador Ashraf Jehangir Qazi analysed the 'Competing Dynamics: The New Dynamics of US-China relations' and stated that history teaches when a new great power emerges, a great disequilibrium emerges. He said that China's strategic support to Pakistan has its limits and to take advantage of any strategic alliance, it is imperative to address the challenges at home first.
Dr Imran Syed, Assistant Professor at COMSATS, in his presentation on 'US-North American Ties: Continuities and Discontinuities' stated that Trump's ability to move forward on foreign policy will be curtailed because of the checks and balances engrained in the US system.
Former Ambassador Saeed Khalid evaluated the future of US-Russia relations and stated though Trump is yet to lay down his Russian policy, one should not overlook the fact that any lowering of US commitment to Europe or Nato would have two repercussions: firstly, America's profile would suffer, and secondly, it would also cause severe losses to the defence industry.
Former ambassador Fouzia Nasreen stated that there was a general xenophobic sentiment in the world at the moment and Trump's election is evidence of the limit to the acceptance towards migrants. Shamsa Nawaz, research fellow at ISSI, examined 'US-European Relations: Identifying the Central Pillars of Co-operation under Trump.' She stated that despite various meetings by members of the US administration with their European counterparts, there is still an absence of clear policies towards the European Union.