Military diplomacy is being used around the globe for maintaining peace and stability and also used as instrument of foreign policy to solidify cooperation and relations among countries. In the current scenario, the world order has experienced a shift in the strategies to engage with other countries. Now every stakeholder matters in the international arena. Considering the political imbalance in the national politics of Pakistan, military diplomacy has emerged as an effective mean to engage with the world. Over the time, military leadership has proved itself to be the sole bulwark against all the odds and helped Pakistan in every domain of national affairs. The famous political scientist Stephen Cohen talking about the armed forces of Pakistan said that; “There are armies that defend their country’s territory, armies that are concerned about defending their own position in society, and armies that defend a cause or ideology, and the Pakistan Army does all three.”
Pakistan has been successful in curbing the menace of terrorism over the years due to its effective strategies and successive result-oriented military operations. Achievements of Operation Zarb e Azb, which commenced in 2014, were consolidated through Operation Radd ul Fasaad, launched in February 2017 under Gen Bajwa’s leadership. During Operation Radd ul Fasaad, terrorists who had been destabilizing the nation from bases in the erstwhile FATA and beyond the Afghan border were eradicated, along with their sleeper cells, financial backers, and support system from across the country. Under Operation Radd ul Fasaad, more than 400 operations have been carried out to successfully eliminate such networks in metropolitan areas and other places. The military used this operation to take action against 78 terrorist organizations while seizing their assets, limiting their mobility and squeezing their freedom of action.
According to Forbes magazine, General Bajwa was ranked 68th on the list of world’s most influential people in 2018. Magazine asserted that he has “established himself as a mediator and proponent of democracy.”
Due to the Hindutva policies of the Indian state, relations with India were at an all-time low. When India under the Modi regime did adventure against Pakistan’s territory in 2019, they received a thunderous response from Pakistan Armed Forces in the shape of Operation Swift Retort. The response resulted in the downing of two Indian planes and the capture of an Indian pilot. Relations between Pakistan and India further deteriorated after Kashmir’s special status was abolished by India under article 35 A and 370 against which Pakistan has been protesting at all International forums. Even under such tense relations, Pakistan as a goodwill gesture constructed the Kartarpur Corridor to accommodate Sikh pilgrims, and earned good name at international fora.
The transition in Pakistan’s strategic approach from geo-strategy to geo-economy has been another significant development under the current military leadership. In the region, Gen Bajwa has been crucial in fostering new alliances and preserving long-standing ties. Due to the effective military diplomacy, friendly nations in the region have granted Pakistan concessional loans totalling more than USD 15 billion to help the country’s economy from facing catastrophe. The military leadership also played a crucial role in the recent development to secure IMF loan.
The brotherly states from the Islamic world showed up to help Pakistan sail the choppy waters. Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait and some other states came forward to provide Pakistan financial support in this difficult time. This was made possible after the successive visits of COAS Gen Bajwa to the respective countries. He also received multiple awards from different countries owing to his contributions towards preserving international peace and stability and promoting globalized economic progress. Gen Bajwa has proved himself to be among the few Army leaders who proposed a win-win model for every country in the international arena and therefore, is lauded as the epitome of peace around the globe.
He received the Order of Union award from UAE’s President, the Medal of Excellence from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Bahrain Order (first class) from Bahrain’s Prime Minister Prince Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa, the Jordanian Order of Military Merit from King Abdullah II, the Medal for the Common Wealth in Rescue and a Letter of Commendation from the Russian Mountaineering Federation during a visit to Pakistan in December 2018, and the Turkish Legion of Merit during a visit to Turkey.
Additionally, a recent visit to Qatar has further solidified relations between Pakistan and Qatar. Gen Bajwa holds the honour of being invited as 1st ever Pakistani as well as 1st ever military general to represent the Queen at the Sovereign’s Parade Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, UK.
Furthermore, a new chapter of military-to-military cooperation between China and Pakistan was launched as a result of the COAS’s visit to China. When asked about Gen. Bajwa’s appointment as chief of the army staff for another three-year term in 2019, the spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry, Geng Shuang, said, “We believe that under the leadership of Gen Bajwa, Pakistan Army will continue to make contributions to upholding Pakistan’s sovereignty and security interests, as well as regional peace and stability.” “We have seen this move by the Pakistani administration.’’
Gen Bajwa also played a key role in finalizing Intra-Afghan dialogue, agreement between US and Taliban and smooth withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan. Due to his personal interest and efforts a dire security disaster in Afghanistan was averted.
The term ‘Bajwa Doctrine’ was coined by the Royal United Services Institute after Gen Bajwa’s address to the 54th Munich Security Conference. Military diplomacy remains the unseen hand in Pakistan’s national discourse and yet provides the required and desired efforts wherever needed. The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) describes Pakistan’s military diplomacy as “more action, fewer words”.
The Karkey dispute settlement is an example of resolving complicated bilateral issues without sparking a global uproar or harming relations between Pakistan and Turkey. Three ISI personnel who were instrumental in resolving the Karkey dispute received the civil award of Sitara-e-Imtiaz from the President of Pakistan on August 14, 2020. The Karkey issue’s resolution once again highlighted the crucial role of Pakistan Army’s leadership in aiding the civilian administrations in resolving important national issues, sparing Pakistan from financial and diplomatic damages.
Due to the Army’s leadership tireless efforts, Pakistan was spared from a $11 billion fine in the Reko Diq case, and a project to extract significant gold and copper reserves from the site in Balochistan was reinstituted. The COAS personally encouraged all parties for a National Consensus, which led to the Reko Diq deal. For the Federal and Provincial Governments as well as the Baloch people, Reko Diq will prove to be a game changer. It will not only help Pakistan regain its reputation as an investment-friendly country, but it will also bring about significant financial prosperity, the expansion of domestic resource exploration capabilities, and a significant socioeconomic upsurge for Baloch people.
Due to Gen Bajwa’s outreach to regional and international defence organizations that have a significant impact on the sovereign policies, his tenure as COAS has been remarkable. Security institutions and the ruling authorities of China, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and other regional nations have had significant talks.
The years General Qamar Javed Bajwa served as COAS are significant for his steadfast desire to save Pakistan from the damaging effects of the war on terror and Pakistan’s security and economy. The two issues that General Bajwa faced the most during his administration were Hindutva driven politics under PM Modi and the unrest in Afghanistan. Both issues have been successfully countered and successive measures are being taken to mitigate negative effects of these issues on Pakistan.
Armed forces have taken an “apolitical stance” for the past few years, allowing politicians to handle political disputes. During Gen Bajwa’s tenure, our National Security Policy’s transition to geo-economics is another significant milestone which is likely to help Pakistan resolve its economic woes as well as redefine its diplomatic and strategic relations with other countries.
