Moving to bolster its influence over Afghanistan's reconstruction, Pakistan has withdrawn its recognition of the Taliban as representatives of the official government of Afghanistan. Some Pakistani experts view the move as a good-will gesture towards the Northern Alliance, which now controls Kabul. At the same time, Islamabad is making it clear that it will not tolerate a Northern Alliance-dominated government in Afghanistan.
All Taliban diplomatic offices in Pakistan, except the embassy in Islamabad, were closed by November 20, according to foreign ministry officials. Speaking earlier at a news conference, Pakistani Foreign Minister Abdul Sattar characterized the Northern Alliance control of the Afghan capital as "the presence of only one faction of several Afghan groups in Kabul." Sattar indicated that Pakistan would restore full diplomatic relations with any future government in Kabul once a broad-based government was in place.
President Pervez Musharraf's chief spokesman, Brig. Gen. Rashid Qureshi, said in a telephone interview that Pakistan expects that Afghanistan's new government will feature the proportional representation of all ethnic groups. Such an arrangement would leave Pashtuns with a plurality of seats on a provisional governing council.
Political observers in Pakistan suggested that in cutting its links with the Taliban, Islamabad is seeking an increased Pashtun role in a UN-sponsored process to form a provisional government in Afghanistan. Pashtuns, the largest ethnic group in Afghanistan, had formed the primary source of support for the Taliban. The first meeting in the UN stabilization process is scheduled to convene November 26 in Germany.
Pakistan had been the principle backer of the Taliban, helping the radical Islamic movement to seize and hold onto power in Afghanistan. Islamabad's action came as the Taliban's position in southern Afghanistan continued to deteriorate. Several Pashtun tribal leaders reportedly renounced their support for the Taliban on November 20.
The Pakistani government is facing intense domestic criticism for recent developments in Afghanistan, in particular the sudden collapse of Taliban authority that left the Northern Alliance masters of up to 80 percent of the country.
Some Pakistani politicians, including those belonging to the Muslim League of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, view the Northern Alliance's capture of Kabul as a major setback for Pakistani foreign policy. Some local newspapers have described the Northern Alliance's domination of the capital as a "betrayal" by the United States. The Northern Alliance, which comprises ethnic Uzbek, Tajiks and Hazaras, has been supported by Russia, Iran and India. Those three states have sought to limit Pakistani influence in Afghanistan.
At present, the Northern Alliance appears well positioned to dominate state-building debates. As it currently stands, Pashtuns will be underrepresented at the Berlin gathering. "We are very aware that convening these groups [in Berlin] would not mean that every single Afghan would feel totally happy, totally represented," UN special envoy Francesc Vendrell told the British Broadcasting Corp. Vendrell stressed that the Berlin did not represent the "final step" in the process to form a multi-ethnic provisional government.
Some experts in Pakistan say the government took too long to withdraw recognition of the Taliban. This slowness to accept the political reality has hindered the emergence of alternate Pashtun elements capable of playing an influential role in the UN stabilization process.
Editor's note:
Akhtar Jamal runs his own web site, Pakistan Press Review. He contributed this article to EurasiaNet.
