Pakistanis either live in their own world or they are high on something extremely potent and illegal all the time. Otherwise, there is no sane way to describe how delusional The Diplomat’s Lahore-based correspondent Umair Jamal’s long-winded plea to outsource national sovereignty is. Jamal has penned a classic Pakistani fantasy piece, rather a strategic kink, where he attempted to portray India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) as a dangerous move that could invite retaliation not from Pakistan, but from China.
Yes, you read that right. In a world where most countries deal with their disputes bilaterally or through diplomatic means, Pakistan, ever the eternal teenager, needs to call not one but both its daddies when India gives it the cold shoulder. The classic “Tu jaanta nahi mera baap kaun hai” came from Jamal in an ironic manner, as it seems he, just like all the Pakistanis, does not know who their father actually is. No no, not literally. We are just talking about the diplomatic father on an international platform.
Blame India, forget the terrorists, and tell Uncle Sam
Jamal, in his article, conveniently glossed over the fact that 26 innocent Hindus were brutally killed in a terror attack in Pahalgam, and the terrorists who claimed responsibility, The Resistance Front, are linked to Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba. He did not even spare a line to condemn the massacre of civilians by the illegitimate sons of Lashkar-e-Taiba. Rather, he jumped straight into playing the victim, blaming India for “escalating” tensions by suspending the treaty.
Apparently, expecting Pakistan to rein in terrorists is unreasonable. However, blaming India for daring to respond? That is fair game. Classic abuser-victim reversal. And where does Jamal make this case? Not in Pakistan’s Parliament, not in a regional forum, but in The Diplomat, an American publication. Because when it gets rough with India, Pakistan’s first instinct is to write op-eds to mummy and daddy in the West while cosying up with the stepbrother of the Dragon world. Anything for sympathy points and a potential ceasefire bailout.
China to the rescue, again?
The highlight of the article is its sheer audacity to suggest that China might block the Brahmaputra in retaliation to India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, as if Xi Jinping is just waiting for a Pakistani journalist’s permission to pull the lever.
Mind you, this is not foreign policy analysis but a fan fiction, that too from an amateur who thinks he is a master in his field. The kind where the bullied schoolboy daydreams about his elder brother beating up the bully, without even hitting the gym himself. Yes, I called India a bully, because for the first time, India showed its prowess and baseball-batted the bootlicking hustler what superiority looks like. For some, such aggression sounds like that of a bully, and even if it does, so be it.
Jamal forgot one crucial aspect of the scenario he presented. China is not India’s father. Nor is it Pakistan’s. China is a business partner and a creditor for Pakistan. And as for the Brahmaputra, India has already raised concerns over Chinese damming activities. Trying to use that as a threat now is like warning someone about a burglary, they have already installed cameras for. India is very much capable of handling China’s aggression, something the dragon would not prefer to showcase, because Pakistan is being a cry-baby.
The desperation reeks, and so does the dependency
From warning India of “chaos in Pakistan” to quoting the Pakistani National Security Committee’s chest-thumping on “vital water interests,” Jamal’s piece is full of threats his own country is in no position to carry out. Pakistan depends on the IMF to pay for the electricity bills. Pakistan depends on Chinese loans to build dams. The same Pakistan is threatening war over river waters. The way Pakistan is behaving is the same way defaulters behave when the municipal corporation cuts the water connection due to non-payment of bills.
Not to forget, Pakistan desperately pleaded with the US to broker a ceasefire. While US President Trump claims he had a role to play in the ceasefire, India has stood firm on its stance that no third party was involved in the understanding between India and Pakistan to stop the military operation. It is, anyway, not a ceasefire, as Indian Armed Forces chiefs and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh categorically said in multiple statements. India’s Operation Sindoor is ongoing.
Journalism or diplomatic freeloading?
It is worth asking why Jamal, a Pakistani journalist, felt the need to make this case in an American magazine rather than a Pakistani one. Forget that he is The Diplomat’s correspondent. The question is, who cares on an international platform if Pakistan is crying or feeling bullied? Could it be that the domestic audience is tired of these doomsday narratives? Or is this another attempt to internationalise Kashmir and Indus waters by dragging foreign capitals into regional affairs?
In either case, Jamal’s writing lacks serious journalism and is more inclined towards a pamphlet handed out by a drowning man screaming for help to anyone across the world. Just a reminder, Pakistan recently celebrated getting a $1 billion bailout from the IMF.
India has not shut the taps yet – but the tears are already flowing
Notably, it is a long way for India to completely control the Indus waters flowing into Pakistan. But let it be known, the treaty was a gesture of goodwill, not compulsion. And when that goodwill is met with bullets and bombs, the taps can and will be reconsidered.
If India wants to reduce the water flow, India will do it and will do it boldly. Anyone can take note of it, Pakistan’s West Daddy, the East Daddy, or the Martian Daddy.
Conclusion – When foreign policy is outsourced to columnists
Pakistan’s idea of diplomacy is op-ed outsourcing and tantrum-triggering. Jamal has done his bit for his motherland. He has played the ultimate victim card and invited outside intervention. He has warned India of doomsday, all the while pretending that Pakistan’s own record of exporting terror has nothing to do with why India is done playing nice.
Instead of doing propaganda, if Pakistani leaders had invested the energy in stopping jihad factories, they would not have needed to write complaint letters to Beijing and Washington.
