New Delhi: Former US Diplomat Zalmay Khalilzad today said that it is the military and the ISI in Pakistan that decide the key foreign and national security policies and not Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
"There is a vacuum clearly, but on critical issues of national security I think the PM's role, as the case has been with other civilian leaders, is very limited. It is the military and ISI that decide the key foreign and national security policies," the former US envoy to Afghanistan and Iraq told ANI.
On Pakistan's inaction against Hafiz Saeed and asking for more evidence for the 26/11 attacks, Khalilzad said, "That is a mistake by Pakistan. India and US should speak and co-operate each other against terrorism."
He also said that Washington should suspend all assistance to Pakistan, until it changes its policy of 'supporting terrorism'.
"All assistance from the US to Pakistan needs to be suspended including, assistance from multinational originations such as IMF, till Pakistan changes its policy on support for extremism and terror,” he said.
He also pointed out that there have been some changes in the US policy towards Islamabad, in terms of reduction of assistance including the Washington's refusal to subsidies the deal of F-16 jets to Pakistan.
Khalilzad further said that Pakistan needs to be fearful of becoming the next North Korea, implying its isolation from the world.
"Pakistan has to be threatened with prospect for becoming another North Korea and isolated from the world. That might help Pakistan reconsider its approach" he said.
"There are some voices in Pakistan saying they are too isolated in the world and we need to change our policies. I hope .that Pakistan will listen to those voices," he added.
Khalilzad also called upon India to play a bigger role in combating terrorism.
"As India's power grows its responsibility also grows..Its needs to play a bigger role in co-operation with the United States and others in a fight against extremism and terror," he said.
He also appreciated the move by the US to put the Indian head of al-Qaeda on the global terrorist list.
Almost one and half year after al-Qaeda chief Ayman Al-Zawahiri announced the creation of al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) and introduced Indian-origin Asim Umar as its leader, the United States today designated AQIS as a “foreign terrorist organisation” and added Umar to its list of global terrorists.
