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Strengthening Bonds with
Gas
President
Mohammad Khatami’s three-day visit to
Pakistan attracted the attention of political and media circles in
the region and beyond.
Pakistan, with which
Iran shares a border hundreds of kilometers long, is believed to
be the only nuclear power state neighboring
Iran.
Pakistan, often considered the homeland of political and military
conflicts, has had a tense and traditional rivalry with its nuclear powered
neighbor,
India. It is this quarrel and discord between
India and
Pakistan that has prevented the outbreak of any serious friction
between
Pakistan and
Iran. In short,
Pakistan has made no direct hostile gestures towards
Iran.
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"Khatami:
All three countries of Iran, India and Pakistan will benefit from this
project, as it will relieve tensions and facilitate regional security
and stability" |
However, there have been “third parties”
that have upset this delicate relationship. When examining the cycle of
“friendship and tension” between
Iran and
Pakistan, it becomes obvious that
Afghanistan, the hub of regional crisis, is the disruptive “third
party”. Now that
Afghanistan has undergone a fundamental political change and is moving
towards internal security, it appears to be the appropriate time to expand and
cement bilateral relations between
Iran and
Pakistan. In addition to traditional cooperation against drug
trafficking and Afghan refugee inflow, which can now be continued more
effectively, there seems to be many new opportunities at hand.
The “gas strategy” is one such opportunity.
The strategy, which was suggested by the Iranian President during his visit,
seeks to transport Iranian gas to
India with pipelines passing through
Pakistan. The strategy’s impact is not merely confined to financial
benefits and is capable of contributing to peace in the region. The gas
strategy is a practical method of avoiding military confrontation between
India and
Pakistan.
Iran’s foreign policymakers for the Indian subcontinent have
highlighted the potential peacemaking and war-preventing nature of this
project along with its obvious financial benefits. President Khatami
emphasized this fact and in the course of a press conference said: “all three
countries of
Iran,
India and
Pakistan will benefit from this project, as it will relieve tensions
and facilitate regional security and stability”.
It would be prudent of regional and world
powers to support and encourage such projects, which facilitate the
establishment of lasting peace between
India and
Pakistan. |
