Nawaz Sharif, the Pak Prime Minister, in course of his election campaign and on his victory repeatedly declared that he would work seriously for improving Indo-Pak relations. He laid so much stress on it that the people, particularly in India started entertaining expectations that he really meant business. The people on borders, who are the regular sufferers when ceasefire violations take place, took a sigh of relief. But quite contrarily, the things unfolded to surprise these people. Immediately after Sharif took the oath of office, the continuing ceasefire since 2003, was thrown into wind. Such violations were not only repeated but occasionally very brutal as well. Nobody understood this complete about-turn of the new Pak PM.
A perusal of the differences between his expressed views and reality on the ground has unravelled his well thought out secret diplomacy. Pakistan, earlier depended on the US not only for foodgrains but also arms and ammunitions and support on international fora. However, since India improved its relations with the USA, which preferred to sidetrack Pakistan, the latter has started feelimg unnerved. America rightly decided that India emerging as a regional power was a force to reckon with and put Pakistan on the back-burner.To put the things back on the old track, in view of his upcoming official visit of USA, Nawaz Sharif changed his strategy.
He precipitated the border skirmishes to tell Obama that the things were going to worse and hence the US should interfere and arbitrate on Kashmir issue. Since both the parties are nuclear powers, before any devastating scene occurs, Obama should intervene by restraining India. Secondly, he charged that India was intentionally trying to portray Pakistan as a rogue state. Obama, like a clever politician, which he is, reiterated his country’s old stand of not internationalizing the Kashmir issue and thrash out an amicable solution through bilateral dialogues. About the militancy issue as well, he flayed at Sharif for doing nothing in case of 26/11 Mumbai serial blasts perpetrators. He also wished that no country should allow its land to be used by any outfit to carry out trans-border militant activities. Thus, Sharif returned empty handed and dejected. The scenario being so, the ceasefire violations are bound to scale down automatically in due course.
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