India warns Pakistan of creating BIMSTEC instead of SAARC

[Syed1]

NEW DELHI: In order to hide its own actions to impede the success of SAARC including refusal to attend the SAARC summit in Islamabad, India sent out a message to Pakistan on Monday, warning it that South Asian nations would find other ways to cooperate on regional initiatives if it continues to block initiatives under the SAARC banner. Indian Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar also presented a snapshot of what a 'SAARC without Pakistan' could achieve.

With out admitting that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi refused to attend the SAARC summit in Islamabad which was aimed at pressurising Pakistan, S Jaishankar instead took a shot at Islamabad in an address to a think tank in New Delhi. "Problem with SAARC is that some basic sort of standards of regional cooperation have to apply. If you say that I will be regional member but I will not allow regional trade, I will not allow regional connectivity, will not allow regional motorways, I will not allow regional railways, then what is it about," he said, referring to a connectivity project that Pakistan had blocked at the last SAARC Summit in Kathmandu.

"You cannot be a member of a region and block every possible regional initiative and still say I am good member. That sort of approach has to change," Jaishankar added.

He further indicated that if South Asian countries found their initiatives blocked under the SAARC banner, they would look to other regional groupings like the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation ( BIMSTEC) to meet these needs.

He also buttressed speculations over a 'SAARC without Pakistan' by saying India is prepared for cooperation on regional connectivity projects. The stinger came when he expressed support for connectivity projects backed by China and referred to the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar (BCIM) project as an example.

The future of SAARC has been increasingly questioned after the cancellation of the summit that was scheduled to be held in Islamabad. The Summit had been due to stubbornness of India and its influence on countries like Bangladesh, Bhutanand Afghanistan to also boycott the summit.

http://nation.com.pk/international/22-Nov-2016/india-warns-pakistan-of-creating-bimstec-instead-of-saarc

 

[Syed1]

Please India go ahead and create your alliance. SAARC is defunct anyway. It was never going to work, India wants to be the big daddy in SAARC which is acceptable to all of India's minions but not acceptable to Pakistan.

Besides we have good relations with Sri Lanka outside of SAARC anyway, Maldives, Bhutan and Nepal don't really matter. Bangladesh is another which comes close to us or goes against us depending on who is in power in Dhaka. Afghanistan is India's poodle through and through.

 

[Eagle_Eye]

Please India go ahead and create your alliance. SAARC is defunct anyway. It was never going to work, India wants to be the big daddy in SAARC which is acceptable to all of India's minions but not acceptable to Pakistan.

Besides we have good relations with Sri Lanka outside of SAARC anyway, Maldives, Bhutan and Nepal don't really matter. Bangladesh is another which comes close to us or goes against us depending on who is in power in Dhaka. Afghanistan is India's poodle through and through.

Afghanistan will fall into line.... it's about playing the patient game. The west will eventually get bored in Afghanistan ... throwing good money after bad. Tajik hegemony in the political sphere will break when that happens.

 

[anakin]

Denial

Please India go ahead and create your alliance. SAARC is defunct anyway.

Anger

It was never going to work, India wants to be the big daddy in SAARC which is acceptable to all of India's minions but not acceptable to Pakistan.

Bargaining

Besides we have good relations with Sri Lanka outside of SAARC anyway, Maldives, Bhutan and Nepal don't really matter. Bangladesh is another which comes close to us or goes against us depending on who is in power in Dhaka. Afghanistan is India's poodle through and through.

3 stages in one post.... Depression and acceptance are left!

SAARC works by consensus and Pakistan has blocked literally all proposals relating to trade and cooperation and hence put SAARC in a limbo.
Your post is typical way in which Pakistan keeps isolating itself from the rest of the world.

 

[Yossarian]

SAARC works by consensus and Pakistan has blocked literally all proposals relating to trade and cooperation and hence put SAARC in a limbo.
Your post is typical way in which Pakistan keeps isolating itself from the rest of the world.

No need to go around the houses. You mean the refusal by Pakistan of allowing Indian goods being shipped through Pakistan territory to Afghanistan?

 

[anakin]

No need to go around the houses. You mean the refusal by Pakistan of allowing Indian goods being shipped through Pakistan territory to Afghanistan?

Transit of goods to Afghanistan is a minor bilateral thing, When Pakistan has been major obstacle for SAFTA, SAARC satellite, or any other regional cooperation proposals. Any cooperation in South Asia will benefit India as India is in South Asia, but that concept is anathema to Pakistan.
International cooperation is impossible when one country is all about a zero sum game.

 

[Yossarian]

Transit of goods to Afghanistan is a minor bilateral thing, When Pakistan has been major obstacle for SAFTA, SAARC satellite, or any other regional cooperation proposals. Any cooperation in South Asia will benefit India as India is in South Asia, but that concept is anathema to Pakistan.
International cooperation is impossible when one country is all about a zero sum game.

In other words, India is miffed because Indian/Afghan trade, which India wishes to increase (for political as well as commercial reasons) cannot go through Pakistani territory, whilst the need for Pakistani trade to traverse through Indian territory is virtually non-existant.
Other than trade with Bangladesh and Sri Lanka (and Afghanistan), there is very little Pakistani trade with the other member countries (excluding India itself), whilst it is easier, and cheaper, to use sea routes for Pakistani trade with Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

And of course it was India which refused to attend the conference. Something that you are conveniently ignoring.

 

[Saeed]

Why the statement? Go ahead and do what you want. India wants to be the big daddy and thats unacceptable to any honorable country.

 

[PakLFC]

India wants to be the bully telling others what is acceptable and what is not! They can do that to Nepal and may be Bangladesh at times, never Pakistan They have tried and failed at these tactics many times so time to give up. SAARC was nothing but a get together of corrupt politicians.

 

[anakin]

In other words, India is miffed because Indian/Afghan trade, which India wishes to increase (for political as well as commercial reasons) cannot go through Pakistani territory, whilst the need for Pakistani trade to traverse through Indian territory is virtually non-existant.
Other than trade with Bangladesh and Sri Lanka (and Afghanistan), there is very little Pakistani trade with the other member countries (excluding India itself), whilst it is easier, and cheaper, to use sea routes for Pakistani trade with Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

And of course it was India which refused to attend the conference. Something that you are conveniently ignoring.

SAFTA has been proposed and been in limbo for more than a decade because of Pakistan,Regarding SAARC satellite, Pakistan simply could not digest Indian help in space tech (I being helped by India is against Pakistani principles)...
These are just some of the proposals which Pakistan has single handedly sabotaged because of the consensus norm. As I said for Pakistan any deal involving India has to be a zero sum game, if India is gaining then Pakistan must be losing, That's the cancerous mindset disabling any cooperation.

There is hardly any point when one member keeps blocking any measure of the entire organisation forever.