Below is the transcript of the Q/A Session that COAS General Qamar Bajwa had at the Islamabad Security Dialogue on April 2, at Islamabad.
Q: How do you see security cooperation with China progressing in the next decade?
COAS: We are not looking for camp politics. We had historically excellent relations with the US. The good army we have today is largely built and trained by the US. The best equipment we have is American equipment. We still have deep cooperation with the US and our Western friends. A month back American Air Force was here for a huge exercise with our Air Force. China of course is a very important neighbor and has helped us in many ways. Our military cooperation with China is growing because we are denied equipment from the West. Many of the deals which were concluded have been canceled. So, what do we do? I shall just give you an example: We bought T129 helicopters from Turkey, it’s a very good machine, the deal was signed, it’s a defensive weapon, it’s a gunship but the engine was of American origin so the Americans refused to give the third-party certification. So, what do we do? Either we wait or go somewhere else; either go to Russia or go to China. We will prefer to maintain a balance. Similarly, we were looking for some submarines and the Germans were supposed to give the engines and everything was done. When the submarines were ready, the Germans refused to give us the engines. France has done the same of course under Indian pressure because India is a big buyer. So, what do you do? It is your responsibility to maintain the balance. If you are tilted towards one side out rightly, we’ll find sources from where we can get weapons to save ourselves. You need to carry out introspection, whether your policy is right or not. We have been your allies for a very long time, we were part of the SEATO, CENTO & Baghdad pact, we supported you in Vietnam, we supported you in Afghanistan, we helped you dismantle the erstwhile Soviet Union and the muck you created yesterday we are trying to clean that. So, we have paid a lot of costs. What are you doing about us? I must ask you a question. Are you maintaining a balanced approach or not?
CPEC is a very important development. There was a problem in Pakistan that we had a shortage of electricity, huge shortages. Nobody was coming forward because there was a lot of terrorism so the Chinese stepped forward and they took the risk and they built these plants. But it doesn’t mean that Pakistan is a no-go area, if you feel that there is too much of a Chinese influence in Pakistan, the only way to counter is by bringing in counter investment. Who stops you? We welcome any investment. A few days back Barrick Gold has signed the deal in which they are going to explore a huge copper mine. Barrick Gold is a Canadian company; the Canadian Ambassador is sitting here. So, we will welcome investment and cooperation from the entire world.
