The new government in Pakistan is less than a month old, but there are already doubts about its policies in relation to the NWFP, Afghanistan and Kashmir. True, these doubts have been raised by its leaders’ confusing and sometimes contradictory pronouncements, but the fact that they speak in many voices may not, in itself, indicate doublespeak (even though this is an art that many Pakistani leaders have mastered). Given that it is early days yet, a better way to interpret the present statements is as a debate on which policies to adopt. In other words, what is before us is Pakistani policy in the making, and the question is — should we participate in the process or should we wait till the new leaders decide their policies, even when these are on issues that are vital to us?

Because Pakistan has become the frontline state in the war on terrorism, several countries have joined the Pakistani debate, of which the most vociferous are the US and UK. These two countries sometimes appear over-eager to influence Pakistan’s policy choices. By contrast, our government appears to regard the Pakistani debate as an internal matter, even though what Pakistan does on terrorism or Kashmir, to take the most telling examples, closely concern us. Is our approach wise, as we think it is, or is it merely fatalism?

That depends on which aspect of the relationship we look at. As far as trade and improved people-to-people contacts are concerned, the new government is extremely positive, in contrast to the Musharraf years. We should be able to get SAFTA back on track, and we might even get the transit route to Afghanistan, which would substantially improve Indian aid delivery to that country.

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