West never lauded Pakistan’s sacrifices in Afghan war: PM Imran Khan

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan, on Monday, regretted that Pakistan was not given credit by the western world for its sacrifices in the war on terrorism.

“Pakistan faced the biggest collateral damage in the Afghan war as it is the only country in the US alliance which suffered more than 80,000 casualties, displacement of millions of people and over Rs100 billion loss to the economy,” he said while the opening session of Margalla Dialogue 2021 in Islamabad.

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The prime minister said that despite innumerable sacrifices, Pakistan was alleged of playing double-game. 

The US-allied forces were dropping bombs on us and there was nobody to respond to their aggression, he added.

“There was a vacuum on our part as we could not effectively present our point of view before the world. We were made a scapegoat for the mistakes of the superpowers,” said the PM.

He said that lack of in-depth research led to reliance on second-hand information by the western think tanks on major issues such as Afghanistan.

The inability of the national leadership to handle the Afghan situation wisely landed the country into two main pro and anti-US divisions, added the premier.

He said the role of local think tanks in this situation was important to effectively highlight Pakistan’s perspective in the world rather than being under continuous criticism by the western lobbies.

On the other hand, PM said the racist government in India was pursuing fascist policies against minorities, including in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK). 

However, the premier lamented that the western countries did not criticise it.

PM Imran also said national security could not be ensured unless the inclusive development and equitable growth of all segments of society, provinces, and people were established.

“Unequal distribution of resources leads to anarchy among the people who are left out of the mainstream development.” 

The prime minister said the uplift of an underprivileged segment of the society was critical to ensure across the board national security. He stressed that rule of law and equality for all were the preconditions for democracy.

He regretted that Pakistan suffered an inequality due to three simultaneous educational systems, namely English and Urdu medium schools, and the madrassas.

The premier pointed out that differences in educational standards of the systems resulted in three different kinds of generations with discrimination in opportunities of jobs.

PM Imran also pointed out that corruption, particularly of the elite, was detrimental to the development of a country.

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The PM also emphasised the importance of research by the think tanks of the country to counter the negative propaganda in the world.

“Research leads to original thinking within a society. You have to define yourself instead of letting others define you,” he said.