My friend, the enemy
Editor's note: Lieutenant General Asad Ahmed Durrani is a retired three-star general from the Pakistan Army. He has held prominent positions, including serving as the Director General of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the Director General of Military Intelligence for the Pakistan Army. Currently, Durrani is active as a commentator, speaker, and author. The article expresses the personal opinion of the author and may not coincide with the view of News.Az.
If Modi’s threat to suspend the Indus Basin Water Treaty has forced Punjab and Sindh to back off from the water front, then a letter of thanks to Delhi would be entirely appropriate. But that is not the only favor our arch-enemy has done for us. The enormity of the events at Pahalgam has shattered many myths. If the United States is seen as supportive of India—whether for reasons related to China or otherwise—then we must admit that our assumptions were misguided: scrambling to Washington when Trump was elected or when he launched his tariff wars was never going to bring us any relief.
There was never much doubt about Israel’s support for India. Our belief that allowing this rogue state to brutalize the Palestinians with the active support of its allies would somehow spare us from becoming the next target was deeply flawed — and for that, we are now paying the price. As for the rest of the West, until it is "liberated" by Putin, it will continue to follow its Big Brother’s lead.
Some might still have clung to the illusion that, no matter what, the Saudis would remain on our side. However, with the massive Indo-Saudi cooperation now underway, the latest “earthquake” in the Himalayas should have taught us another fundamental lesson in realpolitik: nothing is permanent. If the Bedouins could not lift a finger for their neighboring Gazans, they certainly would not sacrifice billions of dollars in business for a country that can be bought back for a pittance.
At this point, does it even matter who orchestrated Pahalgam? If the goal was to place Pakistan squarely in the crosshairs, then the long history of false-flag operations—from the hijacking of Ganga to countless others—was never going to stand in the way.
Source:Business Insider
Nuclear capability serves as an effective deterrent, but it comes with limitations and far-reaching implications. Ultimately, the most decisive factor in deterring aggression is the credibility of our response — and that credibility rests on a foundation of national resolve. If such resolve were to truly evolve, whether or not war occurred would cease to be a primary concern; in either case, it would work to our advantage. Unfortunately, the current civil-military hybrid government has proven to be the most divisive administration in the past seven decades.
Political divisions are inherent to any system, but rarely in our history have all federating units harbored simultaneous grievances against the central government. Although an imminent water war may be temporarily on hold, the underlying issue is as old as the nation itself. The Balochistan imbroglio may have begun decades ago, but under the current government, it has escalated to critical proportions. At one point, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) seemed to have a greater stake in the federation than the ruling Punjabi elite; today, not only political discord and the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) divide the country, but an active insurgency has further deepened the fractures.
Even Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), once on the verge of being quasi-mainstreamed, now faces destabilization from a powerful foreign presence in search of real or imagined mineral resources — a development that threatens not just local stability but also risks spilling over into China.
And this brings to mind the deepest self-inflicted wound: the unraveling of a critical regional balance that had been preserved through some of the world’s major upheavals. Regardless of opinions about the Afghans, they historically provided crucial flank protection in our conflicts with India, and their vested interests in Pakistan made them reliable partners for regional stability. It is almost unbelievable that we demanded the Afghans, a people long infatuated with arms, to return their weapons — especially to a country that is now attempting to mend relations with us. Alienating our neighbors while chasing distant powers with a long record of betrayal is tragically reminiscent of the legend of a man bitten by a snake, who returns to the same spot under every full moon, only to be bitten again.
Source: Hindustan Times
But this is the only regime we have right now — and the only platform around which we can build a united front. Therefore, let us rally behind Asim Munir and Shahbaz Sharif, provided they are able to reconcile our countrymen from every corner of the nation and refrain from constantly proclaiming themselves as the ultimate authority on every subject. Once the crisis is behind us, we can then demand that they rid the system of hitmen and bring the agents provocateurs to justice. Until then, they can count on our sincere support.
And by the way, never believe that the so-called enlightened elite would stand shoulder to shoulder with the nation when the Indians come all guns blazing. I still remember many among them praying that the Kashmiri uprising would be crushed quickly — not out of principle, but simply to avoid any disruption to their comfortable lifestyles. It is the madrasa students, often armed with nothing but sticks and stones, who would stand and fight.
And for heaven’s sake, stop spreading the propaganda of our adversaries. Instead, present a united front in the field — it remains the surest path to victory in a hybrid war. And if you are still not tired of hearing about the Afghans, remember this: whenever they united against an external aggressor, they always emerged victorious.
(If you possess specialized knowledge and wish to contribute, please reach out to us at opinions@news.az).
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