The Middle East foreign policy of BJP led NDA government of PM Narendra Modi is much robust than that of UPA’s. In the Middle East, United Arab Emirates (UAE) has become an important closer partner for India because of the efforts of this government. This bonhomie of UAE and India rattled Pakistan also. To the recent Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) foreign ministers summit, India was invited as a guest of honour at the initiative of UAE which the Pakistan was not able to stomach being the founding member of OIC. To an extent Saudi Arabia, a dear friend of Pakistan did not approve of Pakistan’s action of objecting India to the plenary session. For, Saudis are not averse to India. Both UAE and South Arabia need India for their fight against terrorism and also for the regional peace.
Despite Pakistani opposition, India participated in the plenary and our External Affairs minister Sushma Swaraj effectively delivered India’s message against terrorism and the country’s stand for peace and non-violence. She also appraised how pluralist India lives in harmony with 180 million Muslims who speak primarily the local languages to the Islamic nations. However, Pakistan as is its wont tried painting India black on Kashmir issue. Though Pakistan’s remarks were harsh and uncharitable, the summit’s Abu Dhabi Declaration remained silent on Kashmir, unlike the previous year. This in itself is a sign of success in the Middle East policy of the present government.
The Congress party in its long innings of ruling is said to have appealed to OIC to make the country a member of the organisation on ground that India has a huge Muslim population but that was not entertained. To a large extent, of late, with the Modi-led government’s, bi and multi lateral relationships with gulf countries have yielded fruitful results. The UAE and Saudi Arabia came to help India through back channel talks to deescalate tensions between India and Pakistan after the Pulwama and following air strikes.
Pakistan, by harbouring terror camps on its soil to use against its adversaries, has become hostile to three of its bordering neighbours : Iran, Afghanistan and India. Before the Pulwama attack on Indian soldiers on 14th February, the previous day on 13th the terrorists of Pakistani base killed 27 members of Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the south province of Baluchistan. As Pakistan befriends Saudi Arabia, Saudi’s sworn enemy Iran has become their enemy. After the attack on its soldiers, Iran said it would fight directly with Pakistan. Pakistan has deep reservations about Indian activities on Iranian soil and the deal India struck with Iran that grants New Delhi’s operational control on Chabhahar port in southern Iran.
As far as Afghanistan is concerned, the Afghan leader Rahmatullah Nabil, the former intelligence chief now an aspirant in the presidential election said that Pakistan’s ISI sheltered and supported 45-48 groups to attack its neighbouring countries. So, India is not alone in the war against Pak-sponsored terror. Pakistan’s contiguous bordering states India, Iran and Afghanistan are accusing Pakistan of fostering cross-border terrorism. So, Pakistan is losing its diplomatic hand. At the intergovernmental Financial Action Task Force (FATF) meeting last year the US, the UK and France jointly moved a resolution seeking to place Pakistan on an international terror financing watch list.
So, now the actions taken by Imran Khan in arresting some of JeM and LeT terrorists and desiring talks with India that are lauded by Liberals, is not that Khan has become a peace-lover suddenly but for the context above demanded. As is said by many , terrorism is in the DNA of Pakistan. Therefore, India should build capabilities to deal with its hostile neighbour. Right now the nationalist government of BJP is the only answer. For, the Congress dithers in taking action. On the domestic front it tries to please its minority vote-bank being lenient to those harbouring terrorists.
In the present elections the Congress has no answers for the sins it committed in the past. People shudder and shiver to think of various bomb blasts that had happened in various cities of the country during the Congress’s rule. The Congress always talks about the ‘idea of India’ is that what the idea of India is? Fortunately, in BJP led NDA rule, in other words in PM Modi’s rule, not a single terror incident happened barring the ones on military installations in Kashmir. The difference is, the BJP has Modi’s handpicked Ajit Doval as National Defence Advisor and the Congress had no advisor with that capabilities. Ultimately, people want a government that sees to their and the country’s safety and security. Right now, the BJP rightly fits into that category.
