ISLAMABAD: As parliament debated how to respond to a Saudi request for a military role in the war in Yemen on Tuesday, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said he was already engaged in peace moves and expected to “hear something” from Turkey by Wednesday.

On the second day of debate in the joint session of both houses of parliament, smaller parties came out strongly in favour of a peaceful and diplomatic course, though they generally endorsed the government’s commitment to fight any threat to Saudi Arabia’s territorial integrity.

The PM briefly intervened in the debate, primarily to respond to a general complaint voiced on Monday that Defence Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif had not given specifics about the Saudi request for air force jets, navy vessels and ground troops and that he had kept the house in the dark about the government’s response to that request.

But PM Sharif wouldn’t compensate for his minister’s reticence, saying in what he called a clarification, “no more explanation was proper” as “caution is very necessary on such a sensitive issue”.

And, before he went on to speak about diplomatic moves that he said so far involved Pakistan, Turkey, Iran and Saudi Arabia, he repeatedly asked lawmakers to advise the government on “what should we do about the things our friends have asked for”.

The suggestion seemed odd as it was the same Saudi request that the defence minister had mentioned at the end of a sentence buried deep in his prepared statement and had prompted parliamentary party leaders from the PPP, PTI and the government-allied JUI-F to say they wanted to know more.

Prime minister tries to allay concerns over Saudi request for troops, equipment

The PM’s talk of diplomatic moves came when he referred to what he called the “convergence of views to some extent” that emerged when he visited Turkey last week and on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s current trip to Iran. “We expect something from Turkey. Perhaps that thing may come by tomorrow,” he said.

The Turkish leadership might send their foreign minister to Islamabad or speak over the phone to help chalk out the “next strategy”.

He also said the Saudi interior minister had met the Turkish president on Monday.

“We are not lagging on this front,” the PM said, adding that Indonesia, Malaysia and other Islamic countries might also be approached for help.

Khursheed Ahmed Shah of the PPP, the opposition leader in the National Assembly who has yet to make a speech in the debate that will continue on Wednesday, stood up to tell the PM to wait for the word from Turkey. “We are not in a hurry,” he said as he suggested that parliament have an in-camera session as well where the government could say things it would not say publicly.

It was not clear if the PM’s slight nod at this suggestion signalled his assent to Mr Shah’s proposal for an in-camera session.

Senators dominant

As Senator Aitzaz Ahsan did on the opening of the debate, two more senators, PML-Q’s Mushahid Hussain Sayed and the PPP’s Farhatullah Babar, dominated debate on the second day of the session.

Mr Sayed said Pakistan would have no qualms in helping Saudi Arabia, which had helped the country in difficult times, but noted that there was no threat to them right now, despite its legitimate security concerns regarding the situation in Yemen.

Citing three “basic national interests” Pakistan was avoiding; committing troops outside the country while fighting terrorism at home, avoiding joining intra-Arab wars and working for the unity of the Muslim Ummah, Mr Sayed suggested that Pakistan approach China to ask the UN Security Council to order a ceasefire in Yemen. He also suggested that Pakistan and Turkey host a meeting between the Iranian and Saudi foreign ministers in Islamabad or Istanbul, and that Pakistan avoid repeating mistakes of the past like its meddling in Afghanistan.

Non-interventionist help

Mr Babar, who also acts as spokesman for PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, said no political party or individual in Pakistan could say “no” to a Saudi request for help because of the special relationship between the two countries, “but there is a consensus here that we don’t want our boots in Yemen”.

In the current situation, he called for supporting Saudi Arabia in a “non-interventionist way” in fields such as logistics, intelligence-sharing, security of key installations, training in mountain warfare and medical assistance.

This limited assistance, he said, should be accompanied with a “balancing act” though a stepped up dialogue with Iran on border security and bilateral talks on Afghanistan.

Mr Babar said Pakistan could send troops to Yemen as part of a UN peace-keeping force and it would not be in its interest to be used by any Middle Eastern country for posturing against Iran.

Senator Hasil Bizenjo, head of the government-allied National Party of Balochistan, said Pakistan should have no role in what he called an internal problem of Yemen or in the Middle East, which he said was reshaping following the so-called Arab Spring.

PML-Z MNA Ejazul Haq called for helping Saudi Arabia defend its territorial integrity and said Pakistan should send delegations to all Islamic countries to help solve the Yemeni conflict and try to create a ‘Muslim peacekeeping force’.

Fata MNA G.G. Jamal likened Yemen with Afghanistan and said any involvement there would be tantamount to being stuck in a quagmire.

Senator Jahanzeb Jamaldini of the Balochistan National Party-Mengal said Pakistan should opt for the “best policy of negotiations”.

Published in Dawn, April 8th, 2015

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