The Parliamentary Committee on National Security has decided unanimously to invite military leadership and officials of other departments of defense to its next meeting for briefing and to prepare a balanced response to the United States' allegation against Pakistan. The members of the committee discussed the ongoing diplomatic friction between Pakistan and the United States and expressed unity on national security by reaching the decision to invite the military leadership and officials of Defense Ministry and Finance Ministry to the next meeting to discuss the situation.
The parliamentary committee met in-camera with Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq in the chair at Parliament House on Thursday. Minister for Foreign Affairs Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Defense Minister Khurram Dastgir, Leader of Opposition in the National Assembly Syed Khursheed Ahmed Shah, Shah Mehmood Qureshi of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Senator Sherry Rehman of PPP, former law minister Zahid Hamid, secretary interior and secretary defense participated in the meeting.
Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif, Defense Minister Khurram Dastgir, Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua and PM's Adviser on National Security Lieutenant-General (retd) Nasser Janjua briefed the committee on the latest situation.
According to the sources, the committee also discussed the statement of Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav in which he said, "The Indian envoy came with my family for meeting was threatening my mother." The sources said that Opposition Leader Khursheed Shah also proposed to call the officials of Finance Ministry to the next meeting as US President Donald Trump in his New Year tweet said the US had given Pakistan more than $33 billion in aid over the last 15 years.
The sources said that Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif briefed the committee about current situation and relations with the US, India and Afghanistan. The foreign minister said Trump is talking in the language of India and the US is making Pakistan a scapegoat for its failure in Afghanistan. He said that Pakistan's security forces and citizens have rendered tremendous sacrifices in the war against terrorism and that there will be no compromise on dignity and sovereignty of the country.
The minister further warned America not to put blame of its failure in Afghanistan on Pakistan. The sources said the minister also stated that the country's civil and military leadership is on the same page insofar as the issue is concerned. According to sources, the committee's participants dismissed calls for summoning a joint session of the Parliament to discuss the issue.
Later, Chairman Committee Sardar Ayaz Sadiq told media that the parliamentary body concluded that the reasons behind such statements from the US need to be reviewed.
He said a balanced response is needed while engaging with the US. The speaker said the committee's members tried to understand the situation, its recent background and future strategy. He said the most important thing out of the meeting was the unity of all political parties on the issue. He said that committee has decided to convene again next week - on January 11 or 12 - and be briefed by members of the defense institutions.
"Everyone wanted a follow-up meeting to chalk out the plan to counter any eventuality," he explained. "We want engagement with the United States but with dignity and honor," clarified the speaker. Defense Minister Khurram Dastgir also briefed the participants of the meeting. Disputing the American figure of $33 billion of aid in the last 15 years, he said the amount is, in fact, $23 billion and it includes reimbursement in the form of the Coalition Support Fund (CSF). Talking to media on the sidelines of the meeting, Dastgir said when US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and later Defense Secretary James Mattis visited Pakistan, they presented their stance in accordance with diplomatic norms and talks were not threatening and insulting. "[But] this (threat) was present in Trump's tweet and before that when US Vice President Mike Pence made 'putting Pakistan on notice' statement from Afghanistan," he added.
He said, "We need to have a holistic review of the entire situation. We are conducting a complete analysis and coolly formulating our response. There should not be any doubts when it comes to the defense of Pakistan." He said, "The question is if the US will create a situation which will harm Pakistan and if it happens, we are ready for this but still we want to engage the US."
Vice-Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Shah Mehmood Qureshi told media after the committee's meeting that the pressure exerted by the US on Pakistan would have implications on the entire region. He said, "We have to look at the situation in the Middle East, at relations between the US and Iran, and the border that Pakistan shares with Iran," he said. "We have to consider these things as they are part of the larger picture upon which our response must be formulated."
"It [Trump's statement] is of an unusual nature. We have to take it seriously," he said calling on the country to unite. Referring to Washington's decision to cut military aid to Pakistan, Qureshi said that a solution to economic assistance can be found. He added that the figures put forward by Washington differ from the reality and that, during the fight against terror, Pakistan incurred expenditures that the US is yet to reimburse. "We don't make decisions about the future based on economic assistance," the PTI leader added.
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