Foreign policy disconnect

PRIME Minister Shehbaz Sharif stopped in London on his way to New York for the UN General Assembly session. It is his umpteenth foreign trip, and the deputy prime minister is once again inseparable from him. Meanwhile, the interior minister has been on yet another trip to Tehran, as part of Pakistan’s mediation efforts in the US-Iran war. Pakistan’s leaders seem obsessed with being seen on the world stage while their country plunges deeper into political instability and a worsening internal security situation. Islamabad is blocked off with containers yet again as the opposition threatens to march on the capital. At the same time, another terrorist attack hit KP last week, killing and injuring several policemen and civilians in Kohat. Yet the prime minister appears more interested in his foreign trip than addressing security and political problems at home.

The disconnect could not be starker. While Pakistan tries to mediate in a war with far-reaching global implications, and presents itself as a net security provider to Middle Eastern countries, its own house is becoming more unstable. Over the past few days, scores of PTI workers have been detained in a sweep across Punjab, and the capital has been sealed as the administration braces for protests by the PTI (a planned march by the Jamaat-i-Islami against the hike in petroleum prices has been postponed for now). These tough measures reflect the insecurity of a government with questionable legitimacy. The all-powerful interior minister has warned the opposition of a “final solution”. Many see his statement as a precursor to a further crackdown on the opposition, even the imposition of governor’s rule in KP. Any such move would render the situation in that province — already in the midst of terrorism — explosive. A…