Gen. Qamar Javid Bajwa Pakistan’s new Army Chief, challenge or opportunity for Afghanistan
Since the dawn of Pakistan as a nation-state the Army has played a magnificent role in convening the foreign policy objective of the country, its function revitalized from the time when cold war between American and Soviet Union began and USSR occupied Afghanistan, Pakistan became the number one strategic ally of American in South Asia.
The Pentagon heavily invested on the Pak army pumped billion of dollars; provided the army with the lasted military technology and equipments moreover, Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) sponsored and trained Inter Intelligence Service (ISI) and Military Intelligence (MI) and the army itself to engulf Soviet Union in Afghanistan thru the so-called freedom fighters (Islamic fundamentalists) in order to take revenge of Vietnam war from Soviet Union in Afghanistan. Meantime, the Pentagon and Pak Army made a deal to allow the army to pursue its own foreign policy objectives in Afghanistan and in India, however America was well aware of backlashes of the fundamental Islam in the region but the US ignored the Pakistani army vicious intentions because American desire was to defeat the Red Army by hock or by crock.
Ever since, Pakistani Army has clandestinely pursued its foreign policy objective in Afghanistan and in Indian Kashmir the army continued its intents even in the after-math of Soviet Union. Pakistan under the leadership of its army expanded its strategic depth in Afghanistan and India currently the strategic depth of Pakistan for Afghanistan includes the following objective; puppet regime in Kabul, officially recognition of the Durand-line and access to the natural resources and markets of Central Asia and its strategic depth for India is; to get control of Kashmir, engage the Indian army in asymmetric warfare and export Islamic fundamentalism.
In order to achieve the said goals Pakistani Army trained, financed and harbored the most malicious terroristic cells, the said army sponsored Lashker-e-tuiba under the leadership of Haiz Muhammad Saeed and Army of Muhammad under the leadership of Masood Azhar to confront India meantime Pakistani Army funded and guided Tahrik-e-Taliban led by Mullah Habtullah and Haqani network led by Sarajudin Haqani, the army even harbored Osama Benladen the master-mind of Al-Qaida currently Pakistan is the host of Ayman-ulzawaheri the new leader of Al-Qaida.
Further mover, Pakistan has popularized as a sponsor, trainer and exporter of terrorism not only in the region but also in the entire world of course because of the sadistic foreign policy objective of the army. Taking in to account the backdrop and the spiteful motives of the Pakistani army, would the new Chief of Army bring noteworthy alterations in the above said objectives? As the term of Gen. Raheel Sharif as a Army Chief has ended and Prime-minister Nawaz Sharif on November the 27 appointed Gen. Qamar Javid Bajwa as a new Army Chief of Pakistan he becomes the army chief at the time that Pakistan’s diplomatic relations with both Afghanistan and India escalated and the country is more isolated so his major task is to reformulate and revolutionize Pakistan’s foreign policy in order to normalize its relations with Afghanistan and India and shows strong commitment to fight Islamic terrorism in the region and avoid further Isolation of Pakistan, but the history of Pakistan narrates that the change of Army chiefs fetches no considerable changes in the foreign policy of the country accordingly Gen. Jahangir Karamat, Gen. Parvez Musharaf, Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and Gen. Raheel Sharif all of his predecessors followed the same notion, therefore there are skepticism that the new Army Chief will bring a U-turn in the foreign policy of the country.
In conclusion, Gen. Qamar Javid Bajwa will tag on the expansionistic footsteps of his forerunners and he will maintain Pakistan’s hegemony in the region and he will create more and new challenges for the people of Afghanistan.