After the outburst of Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi who gave an ultimatum to Saudi Arabia, the titular head of the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) to stop dilly-dallying on the Kashmir issue, Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa has made a beeline to calm the waters.
Also part of the entourage is the head of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), General Faiz Hameed.
Bajwa who many consider as the last word when it comes to Pakistan’s national security and foreign policy arrived in Saudi Arabia amid tensions as Riyadh has threatened the financial lifeline to Islamabad.
Met today with my brother, H.E. General Qamar Bajwa, Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff. We discussed bilateral relations, military cooperation, and our common vision for preserving regional security. pic.twitter.com/PeDRCErx0i
— Khalid bin Salman خالد بن سلمان (@kbsalsaud) August 17, 2020
The visit has been touted as “primarily military-affairs oriented”, Pakistan’s army spokesman said. However, everyone knows that Bajwa is there to mend the ties after Qureshi issued an ultimatum and tried to undermine the Saudi hegemony over OIC.
Under the guise of “military to military ties including training exchanges,” Bajwa is trying to fix the relationship with the Saudis who gave Pakistan a $3bn loan and $3.2bn oil credit facility to help its balance of payments crisis in late 2018.
But for a long time, the Saudis have been asking Pakistan to dial down on the Kashmir issue with India but things got out of hand when Qureshi said, “I am once again respectfully telling OIC that a meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers is our expectation. If you cannot convene it, then I’ll be compelled to ask Prime Minister Imran Khan to call a meeting of the Islamic countries that are ready to stand with us on the issue of Kashmir and support the oppressed Kashmiris,”.
Qureshi’s remarks made Riyadh angry and Pakistan was forced to pay back $1bn prematurely and is demanding another $1bn of the loan. Imran Khan when he was playing chauffeur to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman thought that the Saudis will not ask for the money back, but his presumptions got the better of him.
Also, Riyadh is not heeding to Pakistani requests to extend the $3.2bn oil credit facility.
This statement was seen as a direct threat because, in the last year, Pakistan has moved quite closer to Turkey as Pakistans effort to raise the Kashmir issue at the OIC forum has not received any support.
The Saudis did not take kindly when Prime Minister Imran Khan tried to be part of a Turkey led non-Arab countries forum. However, he pulled back at the last moment at the insistence of Riyadh, which saw as a direct challenge its leadership of the OIC.
It must be noted that more 25 lakh Pakistani citizens are working in Saudi Arabia and send hundreds of millions of dollars in much-needed remittance every year.