There are many misunderstandings about foreign policy construction in Pakistan. We often miscalculate the actualities of foreign policy and are inclined to overdo the role of the military or “establishment” in its formulation and execution. The foreign policy of every country is inseparably linked to its national security, and no foreign policy is complete without the participation of its national security agencies input.
Given Pakistan’s atypical geopolitical environment and its volatile neighborhood, most of the foreign policy issues involving vital national security interests have to be addressed through a larger consultative process with the contribution of all relevant government agencies and stakeholders including military and intelligence agencies. There is nothing strange in this process which is followed in every state loaded with national security issues. No foreign office is furnished with intelligence gathering and analyzing capabilities and can’t function in a vacuum of intelligence and security information relevant to the foreign policy goals that it is thought to be pursuing.
No wonder, in our case, on issues of national security our GHQ and intelligence agencies have an essential role. On issues of trade and commerce with India and transit trade with Afghanistan, the questions having a direct bearing on the country’s security can’t be dealt with in isolation from the country’s concerned departments and agencies. On issues with importance to national security, the foreign office cannot work without military and intelligence inputs in its normal functioning. This is the case in every country.
Even in the United States, their state departments cannot and do not function without the backing of their intelligence network. For that matter, America too has a so called establishment represented by the pentagon and the CIA which are playing the main role in their foreign policy issues including America’s national security interest in the perspective of its regional and global power outreach. In our case, there is another depressing reality if there are examples of military dominance in foreign policy issues, it is only because our civilian setups are ever devoid of any strategic vision or talent in their political forces. They lack the obligatory technocratic ability and understanding of national security concerns.
The military’s burden in foreign policy formulation and execution is facilitated whenever there is a vacuum of strategic vision. Our issues in foreign policymaking, therefore, are fixed in the strategic bankruptcy of our political forces which are controlled by the same old class of elitist oligarchs, no more than a bunch of self-serving, feudalist, and unprincipled politicians, who since Pakistan’s independence have being used to rule the country, on civil and military bureaucracy.
