US military solution failed in Afghanistan: Kh Asif

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif on Thursday said that the United States has failed in Afghanistan after deploying its forces for over 16 years and a political solution is needed.

He was briefing the National Assembly's Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Pakistan wants to have ties with the US based on self-respect and dignity; the country would not compromise on its sovereignty and dignity, the foreign minister underlined.

He said Pakistan had clearly told the US that it would not be a scapegoat in Afghan war, adding that the US was clearly apprised that the country was not responsible for its sheer defeat.

About his recent tours of four countries concerning the revised US policy towards the region, Asif said that the all four friendly countries backed Pakistan's stance towards the US.

All these countries had also expressed reservations about the new US policy, the finance minister said. "Pakistan has also extended its consultation with Saudi Arabia regarding the US policy," he added. He said all these countries have advised Pakistan to hold talks with the US.

Moreover, he said the parliamentary resolutions also sent a strong message to the US.

On Wednesday, the foreign minister was addressed the Senate session chaired by Raza Rabbani over the visit of United States Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to Pakistan on Tuesday.

Khwaja Asif reminded that relations with US were seven decades old but several compromises were made in the past by respective governments and it would be more ideal to discuss Tillerson's visit.

He said that Pakistan desires peace in Afghanistan and is making efforts, but a large portion of the restive nation is controlled by the Islamic State. "Daesh is in control of forty-five percent of Afghanistan" he stated.

"We have not made any compromise over (US President) Trump's speech," he said adding a compromise was made after the 9/11 attacks and the effects are still seen. "US efforts in our neighbourhood will not succeed," he said. "The Afghan government is facilitating India in the region."

Khawaja Asif said that US has failed against the Afghan Taliban but is not willing to admit its mistakes over his policy which has yielded no results since the last sixteen years. "We have informed them that those leading are the one who have lost the war," he said. "Those who have failed will never develop a policy to admit their shortcomings."

"We have also told them to let the politicians there decide the policy," he said and several ISAF and Centcom commanders have failed with their policies and are instead blaming Pakistan.

On the contrary, the foreign minister said that Pakistan has seen several successes in the war against terrorism and its armed forces and law-enforcement agencies have made tremendous sacrifices.

"We are the nation which has stood up against a super power," he said that Pakistan is self-respecting nation which has stood up against the United States.

"Our government is not at the mercy of the United States," he said adding that previous governments were reliant on the US for its power survival. "My strength lies in the parliament and the people," adding that the government has not yielded to any pressure in the last two months.

Speaking over Tillerson's brief visit, he said that entire civil-military leadership was united and gave its input and was not apologetic. The US was told that Pakistan would act on 'actionable intelligence' provided to them such as in the recent release of a US-Canadian couple.

However, he said that it is unacceptable for Pakistan to be a proxy and fight the United States war in Afghanistan. "Let me assure the House that we will not compromise on our sovereignty, dignity." Meanwhile, a meeting of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs was held Thursday presided by its new Chairman, Makdum Khusro Bakhtyar.  

In his opening remarks, the Chairman said Pakistan's response to President Trump's South Asian policy dated 21st August, 2017 has been collective, measured and based on realistic assessment of the situation. Chairman said it is a moment of truth for the US in Afghanistan. He underlined importance of not turning our differences into disputes.  

The Chairman appreciated the steps taken by Pakistan to improve border management along the Pak-Afghan border and the need for repatriation of Afghan refugees and their settlement in Afghanistan. The Chairman emphasized the importance of engaging the US in promoting peace in Afghanistan. He expressed the hope that the U.S will not see Pakistan through the Afghan prism and work on a broad based relationship which will be to the benefits of both countries. 

The Chairman thanked the Foreign Minister for his comprehensive briefing on the agenda items relating to President Trump's statement and the visit of the Foreign Minister to China, Iran, Turkey and Russia. 

Members of the Committee appreciated the briefing giving by the Foreign Minister and raised questions on Pakistan-US relations, situation in Afghanistan, relations with regional countries.

The Committee criticized the statement made by the President of Afghanistan relating to CPEC. The Committee expressed serious concern over the remarks made by U.S Secretary of State in Kabul and Dehli with regard to Pakistan.

The Committee taking note of Black Day on 27th October condemned atrocities and grave human rights violations in Indian Occupied Kashmir and denial of the rights of self-determination of the people of Kashmir under UN Resolutions.

On agenda regarding Kulbhushan Jadhav's case in the International Court of Justice, the Additional Attorney General briefed the Committee on current status of the case before the ICJ and Pakistan's legal options. 

The Members who attended the meeting are: Minister for Foreign Affairs, Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Sahibzada Muhammad Nazeer Sultan, Muhammad Khan Daha, Rana Muhammad Afzal Khan, Dr. Nafisa Shah, Dr. Shireen Mehrunnisa Mazari, Ghous Bux Khan Maher, Dr. Muhammad Farooq Sattar, MNAs and Senior Officers of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Cabinet Division and Additional Attorney General also attended the meeting. - NNI