LAHORE: It is high time Pakistan makes a realistic reappraisal of its foreign policy and starts depending on its own resources rather than looking to Western allies who have openly let her down.

This in essence was the keynote of speeches delivered in the West Pakistan Assembly during the course of a debate on the Western arms aid to India.

Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz, who is also a member of the Pakistan Muslim League Working Committee, made a forceful speech  suggesting that our foreign policy should be based on the country’s economic interest and nothing else. She said alliances and emotions should be set aside and our slogan should be “foreign policy should be based on trade and not aid”.

Participating in the general discussion, Mr Gul Mohammad said it was interesting to note that some Americans who described neutrality as immoral were now acclaiming it. So far as Britain was concerned, he said everybody knew that the British were traditionally anti-Muslim and that most of the problems of the Islamic world today were of British creation.—Correspondent