THE American armed incursion of September 3 into the tribal area and the outrage it evoked from Pakistan was but the latest sign of trust deficit that had evidently been there for quite some time between the two key allies in the US-led War On Terror. Strangely enough, the US raid that killed 15 innocent civilians came at a time when Pakistan's six-week long military operation in Bajaur had elicited praise from Washington. As the climate of tension could neither be helpful to Pakistan nor the US and only benefit the militants, the unannounced visit of Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to Islamabad could be viewed as an attempt to bridge the trust deficit. He met on Wednesday morning COAS General Ashfaq Kayani and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani where National Security Adviser Mahmood Ali Durrani and Defence Minister Mukhtar Ahmad were also present. It is not clear whether there is any truth in the unconfirmed reports that the Admiral gave the Pakistani authorities the assurance that no further ground attacks would take place in future. Nevertheless, the order of the army, revealed on Tuesday, to the forces on the ground to "open fire" in case another such incursion takes place conveys a message about Islamabad's attitude towards safeguarding the country's territorial integrity. Army spokesman Maj-General Athar Abbas was right in saying that the army had to take into account local sensitivities in tackling militancy. The US would do well to recognise that position rather than show desperation and mess up relations with an ally whose cooperation is vital to realising its goals. It also does not serve the purpose of fighting terrorism if the Bush administration officials were to keep picking holes in ISI's trustworthiness, as Assistant Secretary of State Boucher has again done, despite Pakistan's stand.
As part of Islamabad's diplomatic efforts to remove US-Pak misunderstanding, President Asif Ali Zardari met British Prime Minister Gordon Brown in London on Tuesday to stress that incursion into Pakistan's territory did not help democracy in the country. He told the media that there was understanding among British leadership that Pakistan be helped in this regard.
Armed incursions into another country's territory being a serious matter about which close friends must be consulted, General Kayani's proposed visit to Beijing seems to be well timed. While Islamabad and Washington ought to iron out their differences since clear understanding between them is the demand of the situation, the exchange of views on the matter with other friendly countries always proves useful. China, one of the closest friends of Pakistan, must invariably be kept in the picture on matters of crucial importance to us.


IT is highly worrisome to note that the economy has continued to deteriorate over the last six months. The Asian Development Bank has forecast 4.5 percent growth, which is below the 5.5 percent targeted by the government. This is understandable on account of the economic woes the country is currently going through. It suffers from the double whammy of budget and current account deficit, falling rupee value, shrinking forex reserves, and unending power shortages. The inflation is highest in the last decade and half. The stock market has fallen to a 28-month low. Domestic debt has surged by 137 percent to hit a historic level of Rs 3.26 trillion in FY08. With liquidity drying up, the cost to protect $2.7 billion sovereign bonds from default is increasing. The financial crunch the government faces has led to a phenomenal inter-corporate circular debt that has forced the private sector energy companies, who are touching their borrowing limits, to shut down a number of power production units further adding to the power shortage.
Much of these economic woes emanate from the skewed economic policies of the Musharraf era based on a development strategy that prioritized sectors providing fewer employment opportunities and allowing the transfer of huge profits abroad. Besides adding to the number of the unemployed, the policy failed to provide enough revenue to the state. The new government's preoccupation with political crisis, partly caused by its own faults, diverted its attention from the economic challenges. There have been reports of an imminent sovereign debt default, which can hopefully be avoided now on account of the falling price of oil, reduction in subsidies and larger remittances compared to the last financial year.
The IMF has underlined the need for substantial external financing. What the government needs to do is to revive the economy rather than depend entirely on foreign assistance. It has to revise its economic strategy giving priority to sectors like agriculture and industrial production, which provide a larger number of jobs, help improve the balance of payments and add substantially to the government's revenues. Besides being sustainable, economic development has to provide urgent and visible relief to the masses. One hopes that as the cabinet is expanded next month, the ministries related to economy are manned by competent people. The government has meanwhile to take measures to bring down political polarisation and improve the law and order situation through a multi-pronged strategy rather than brute force.


NEW Delhi's act of blocking about 0.2 million cusecs of water flowing into River Chenab at a time when crops in Pakistan are in dire need of irrigation is highly condemnable. It is reported that the water India is diverting is being stored in the controversial Baglihar dam built in violation of the Indus Waters Treaty. Islamabad has sought arbitration under the treaty. Concurrently it has asked India to compensate the loss by releasing water into Sutlej, Ravi and Chenab.
It is contrary to international law and practice for India not to have sincerely accepted Pakistan's right as a lower riparian also recognised by World Bank, which first intervened in 1948 when India blocked the water flow to Pakistan. Though a treaty was brokered in 1960, New Delhi has continued to create trouble for us by diverting the channels flowing into Pakistan. At present it is engaged in building 58 dams and water reservoirs on Rivers Chenab, Jhelum and Indus in gross violation of the treaty that grants the control of these rivers to Pakistan. The Baglihar dams' size is so huge that it allows India to block about 8000 acre feet of water. Pakistan's economy is predominantly agrarian in nature. The food crisis is still not over and yet there are fears that the prevailing water scarcity caused by our eastern neighbour might deal a severe blow to the wheat and rice crops next year. The farmers in Punjab are helpless as all the major canals and tributaries supplying water to their fields have almost dried up. Likewise the water reservoirs in Cholistan area are left without a drop of water. This shortage is also fuelling power crisis, directly having a negative effect on our ability to produce electricity.
One wonders whether Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was really serious when he aired his views on improving bilateral relations, as his government appears keen to spoil them because such pressure tactics reflect poorly on its desire to bring peace to the region.

Source: http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-ne...The-water-bomb

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