ISLAMABAD // Asif Ali Zardari is facing scepticism at home about his strategy to overcome security issues and an economic crisis. Only a month after his election as Pakistan's president, Mr Zardari risks losing the support of politicians from within his own ruling coalition.
Mr Zardari is due to convene a joint session of parliament today for a rare briefing from army and intelligence chiefs on the military operations against pro-Taliban militants. The closed-door session comes as Pakistani politicians have come under increasing threat of assassination, the United States has stepped up missile strikes on Pakistani soil and the economy needs a multi-billion-dollar international cash injection to save it from bankruptcy.
The session is expected to be devoted to building consensus on the government's antiterrorism strategy at a time when Pakistanis remain confused as to which direction Mr Zardari's government is headed. Al Qa'eda made public a statement last week exhorting Pakistanis to unite against the government, while the government has published anonymous advertisements in newspapers claiming that the war against extremists is "Pakistan's war".
On a recent trip to the United States, Mr Zardari annoyed Pakistan's powerful military establishment when he made assertions on sensitive foreign policy issues that run counter to conservative Pakistani national security doctrine. He said Pakistan's nuclear arch-rival India has "never been a threat" and was reported to have admitted to the existence of a deal on US missile strikes against militants.
He also bemused many Pakistanis when he said George W Bush, the US president, had made the world a safer place. "There will be many who will question, not only amongst the military but also among the security set-up, the validity of Mr Zardari's statement on India," said one security analyst, Riffat Hussain of Islamabad's National Defence University. Mr Zardari also caused consternation when he described jihadi militants, whom Pakistan has sponsored for two decades to fight against troops in Indian-held Kashmir, as "terrorists".
Perhaps the most significant pledge of change he made was an agreement to allow Indians an overland access to Afghanistan. His proclaimed change of strategy has been welcomed by Pakistan's more liberal media. "He must indeed work towards developing closer links with India, tackling cross-border militancy, urging India to end repression in Kashmir and setting in place the stones on which to build a new relationship. These are all huge tasks, but with will and commitment they can be attained. We must then hope the president means what he says," stated an editorial published yesterday in The News.
Pakistani financial analysts say they believe Mr Zardari is bending over backwards to court the United States so that the international community will release billions of dollars in funds needed to steady the country's fast diminishing foreign reserves and so that it does not default on massive debts. Mr Zardari, however, will have to convince politicians that he has managed to win over the military establishment.
Pakistan's shadowy Inter-Services Intelligence backed the 1996-2001 Taliban regime in Afghanistan and, it is alleged, insurgents in Indian-controlled Kashmir mainly to achieve "strategic depth" against its bigger neighbour. These militants with links to the establishment have turned their weaponry on the politicians. A suicide bomber blew himself up last week as he tried to storm the house of a member of the ruling coalition, killing four people but missing the target.
It happened as Asfandyar Wali Khan, the head of the Awami National Party (ANP), was visiting a guest in a room attached to his house during celebrations for Eid al Fitr. Mr Khan's party, which governs the predominantly ethnic Pashtun North West Frontier Province, joined the coalition government, led by the Pakistan People's Party, after winning elections in February. He vowed that the attack would not stop his party from continuing its opposition to the hardline Islamist Taliban.
Taliban militants have carried out several attacks on ANP activists in the past, including a bombing at an election rally in Charsadda in February that killed 25 people. Last weekend, rockets were fired at the family home of Amir Haider Khan Hoti, the ANP's provincial chief minister. Ismail Khan, a leading Pashtun analyst, said ANP members had "misgivings" about the military's "seriousness" in their fight against militants. The party is seeking assurances from the government to "get a clear picture" of how the civilian and military leadership is planning to tackle militancy.
The ANP has long accused the ISI of backing militants and members want to know if the recent appointment of a new head of the intelligence agency will lead to a significant change. Ismail Khan quoted an ANP leader as having said: "The time has come to clarify the national policy. The double game must end now. We are fighting for not only the Pashtun nation but also for Pakistan, and the military has a key role to play in this."
The ANP will be among many in Pakistan hoping that today's parliamentary briefing will shed some light on where Pakistan is heading. iwilkinson@thenational.ae