AFTER the ICJ disaster on Kulbhushan Jadhav, there was another humiliation for Pakistan, the only nuclear-armed Muslim country, during the recent Riyadh summit. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was not invited to speak at the summit, nor was any meeting with US President Trump arranged. Instead, President Trump ignored, during his lecture to the Muslim world, to mention Pakistan or its sacrifices in fighting terrorism.

To add insult to injury, he termed India a victim of terrorism, ignoring the atrocities committed by Indian armed forces in India-held Kashmir. Furthermore, the Indian role in fanning terrorism inside Pakistan that has been proven beyond doubt -- arrest and confessional statements of Kulbhushan Jadhav and Ehsanullah Ahsan — is also ignored by the US.

It is time we stopped looking after American interests in the region instead of safeguarding our own supreme national interests. China has always proved to be our friend and good neighbour. Our national interests are served by close relations with China.

Umar Khalid Dar

Manchester, UK

Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2017