ISLAMABAD, June 22: Signals from key policy circles in Islamabad and Rawalpindi are that Pakistan is unlikely to go for a tit-for-tat nomination on India’s bid for the post of UN secretary-general.

While reports from the UN headquarters in New York suggest that Indian diplomats are trying to explain the move to declare Shashi Tharoor as India’s candidate for the secretary-general’s job as a response to an anticipated declaration by Pakistan of its own nominee, Islamabad is nearing a decision not to put forward a name.

Instead, taking the multilateral route, Islamabad is likely to work actively to promote a consensus candidate for the UN top post. New Delhi’s nominee, who is currently UN under-secretary for Communication and Public Information, is not seen as a strong Asian contender by Islamabad. Also, as some policy-makers point out, Pakistan’s policy on India is no longer a blindly reactive one. “Pakistan has a national agenda, not an anti-India agenda. We will make our own decisions looking at various factors,” is how one official put it.

Interestingly, of the three names tipped as Pakistan’s possible candidates, one is Prime Minster Shaukat Aziz who apparently wants to retain the PM’s post till 2012. The other, Munir Akram, Pakistan’s leading diplomat at the UN in New York, is also not up for an early departure from his Permanent Representative position.

There is a lot of speculation, but the government has taken no decision to put forward its own candidate for the post. Clearly at this point nominating a Pakistani candidate is not on the cards neither is a change of heart on the issue.

Circles close to the president say that he is clear that Pakistan must move in the spirit of multilateralism. Increasingly it seems that Pakistan will support either Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand Suriakiart Sathirathaith, who is Asean bloc’s consensus candidate, or Sri Lanka’s top diplomat Jayanatha Dhanapala. The fourth official contender from Asia is South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon.

The post of UN secretary-general falls vacant on December 31 when the incumbent Kofi Annan’s second and final term ends.

While there is consensus in Asia and Africa that it is Asia’s turn to lead the world body as the position rotates by geographic region, the US and some European countries have voiced their reservations about it.