A balanced policy towards Saudi Arabia and Iran being pursued: Dastgir

Defence Minister Khurram Dastgir Thursday said that Pakistan is pursing a balanced policy towards Saudi Arabia and Iran by maintaining close cooperation in diverse fields with both the countries. Speaking at a seminar organised by Strategic Vision Institute (SVI) on Pakistan's relations with Iran and Saudi Arabia as well as challenges to these ties, the minister, however, said that at the same time Pakistan expects Iran to have more understanding on Pakistan's position towards its historical partnership with Saudi Arabia and Gulf States.
"Our interests in stability in GCC countries stem from the fact that around 1.9 million Pakistanis live in Saudi Arabia alone, who are contributing a great deal to our foreign exchange reserves," he said. The minister said that Pakistan's relations with the Middle East have evolved as war and strife raged across Syria, parts of Iraq, and Yemen, in addition to tensions of major GCC countries with Iran as well as tensions within the Gulf Cooperation Council.
He pointed out that Pakistan's Middle East policy has been under girded by its longstanding close relations with Saudi Arabia and by focus on limiting the domestic fallout of sectarian tensions stemming from Saudi-Iran rivalry. He said that Pakistan remains wary of being drawn into power struggles along sectarian lines as they are currently taking place in the Middle East. "Pakistan-Middle East policy in recent years has been a balancing act between Saudi Arabia and Iran," he said.
He pointed out that Pakistan maintains an ideological affinity, besides deep military and economic relationship as well as strong leadership ties, with the Kingdom while it is also building economic cooperation and counterterrorism links with Iran. Referring to the government's recent decision to send a contingent of more than 1,000 additional troops to Saudi Arabia, he said that Pakistan armed forces personnel have been deputed to the Kingdom for many decades on training and advisory role-under longstanding bilateral agreements and protocols.
After the evolution of the Saudi-led Islamic military effort from an alliance into a counterterrorism coalition, he said, Pakistan has offered cooperation in counterterrorism training and communications. Driven by the highest leadership of both countries, he said, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have recently begun a process of updating and widening their historical partnership into new areas, particularly economic and industrial cooperation.
However, he recalled that in 2016, the government chose, with support of the Parliament, to avoid being implicated directly in the Yemen conflict. He said the former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif visited Iran in 2014, and Pakistan hosted the Iranian President in 2016 and 2017. He stated that in August 2016, Islamabad and Tehran also agreed on joint counterterrorism efforts to tackle the threat of militant group Islamic State (IS).
He further said that the Chief of Army Staff visited Iran at the end of 2017, followed by visits from National Security Advisor Lieutenant General Nasser Janjua (retd) and Minister for Defence Production Rana Tanvir Hussain. He said that Pakistan deeply values its partnership with both Saudi Arabia and wishes to enhance its relations with Iran. "We have always been forthcoming to play a mediatory role and defuse tensions between both countries," he said, adding that increasing tension in this region, if combined with broad ethnic and religious conflicts, could negatively impact interests of all countries.
Another more recent challenge is the relationship between Qatar and GCC, particularly Saudi Arabia, he added. Compared to Iran, he pointed out that Pakistan's diplomatic and trade relations with Qatar have been very old, both countries have a 15-year agreement to import gas, a large Diaspora of Pakistan has been living in Qatar while bilateral defence deals are quite significant.
The defence minister further said that Pakistan is striving towards a stable neighborhood, especially for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to succeed, adding that the government has pursued a strategy that balances its geopolitical ambitions with its geo-economic interests.
He said that Pakistan has made progress on developing a gateway to the Chinese Belt-and-Road Initiative through the flagship CPEC project. Pakistan offers various avenues for joint economic ventures, he said, adding that Pakistan's strategically important Gwadar Port and Iran's Chabahhar Port can act as sister ports for accruing economic benefits for uplift of the area and providing economic opportunities to the people.
Former Foreign Secretary Shamshad Ahmad, while chairing a session, said that taking sides in Middle East conflicts has never been Pakistan's policy, adding that the Constitution of the country calls for bridging the gaps between the Muslim countries. He said that Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Iran, being the four major powers in the Muslim world, should take the lead and make coordinated efforts to resolve the conflicts among the Muslim states.
Recently, he added, the Saudis started "asking us whether you are with us or not." This, he said, was due to the internal changes within Saudi Arabia. "The unfortunate is the personal links of our rulers with the Saudis," he said, adding that they had agreed "to fight their war" but it was the Parliament which asked the government to stop getting involved in other wars.
Marvin G Weinbaun, Director Pakistan Studies at Middle East Institute, Washington DC, in his presentation on 'Dynamics of Pakistan-Saudi Arabia-Iran Relations and Emerging Landscape of the Middle East' pointed out that Pakistan with more than 200 million Muslim population has been attractive to Saudi Arabia for its agenda of extremist brand of Islam.
After 1979 Islamic revolution, he said, both Saudi Arabia and Iran were being accused of funding the extremist militant organizations. However, he pointed out that after 2001, there has been no evidence that Iran is funding any militant group in the country. He further pointed out that foreign powers have always get involved for their vested interests, adding that the US has always interfered to get benefits from the internal cruises of the country. He also mentioned that Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project is yet to be materialized because of the US pressure.
On Kashmir, he said, Iran has always raised a more vocal voice supporting Pakistan's position than Saudi Arabia. On Pakistan's sending the troops to Saudi Arabia, he said that it seems symbolic as the troops will not be deployed to take action.
Iranian Ambassador to Pakistan Mehdi Honardoost looked cautiously optimistic about the future of Pak-Iran ties. He said the horizon is bright despite impediments and obstacles. The ambassador said that IP gas pipeline is not progressing and moreover no progress has been made on establishment of banking channels. He assured that Indian involvement in Chahbahar Port would not be allowed to be used against Pakistan.
Ambassador Honardoost said Pakistan has the potential to heal the widening rift among the Muslim countries. Former Ambassador Syed Hassan Javed cautioned Iran against the threats that Indian presence in Chahbahar would pose threat to Iran's security itself.