Internews/Islamabad

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is keeping his cards close to his chest when it comes to the Saudi appeal for help in its anti-Houthi offensive in Yemen.
While he has succeeded in getting a resolution passed unanimously against combat operations in Yemen, insiders say the next round of talks with the Saudis will actually be on how to meet their request.
During an in-camera meeting held yesterday the premier requested the parliamentary leaders to support the government’s resolution on the issue instead of responding to their questions on whether or not Pakistan would join the Saudi-led coalition.
The resolution was proposed after five days of deliberations, as the majority of lawmakers urged the government not to send Pakistani troops to join the fight in Yemen.
Sources privy to the development said that Premier Sharif parried all queries about the government’s next move on Saudi demands; whether or not Pakistani soldiers would go to the kingdom; or why was the resolution silent on Saudi Arabia’s requirements.
The premier sought consensus on the draft resolution, claiming he would call the parliamentary leaders along with the military establishment in the next phase. This shows the federal government is still not willing to take the political leadership on board, sources believe.
In the first phase, sources in the federal government said, the government has succeeded in getting the approval of a vague resolution and got a blanket cover over the demands, which remain undefined.
However, the second phase would be crucial as actual negotiations will start between Pakistan and the Saudi authorities, they added. Although the government has committed to staying away from Yemen, the main focus of the upcoming talks with the Saudis will be on meeting their demands.
The agenda of the talks would be deployment of troops on the Saudi border or beyond. So far, the civil and military leadership agree soldiers should not be deployed beyond the Saudi border. But the issue is still debateable.
Pakistan, sources added, will also demand joint control over its security forces instead of the soldiers working under the Saudi command. Pakistani forces are believed to operate well either as an independent unit or under a joint command but not solely under any other’s control.
Around 10,000 ground troops might be dispatched but the decision will be taken after the conclusion of the next round of talks. The demand for logistics would also be meted out in exchange of a good deal, sources said.
Talking to the parliamentary leaders at the in-camera session, the prime minister said the government had convened the joint sitting to benefit from the collective wisdom of all members.
He once again reiterated that any violation of the territorial integrity of Saudi Arabia would evoke a strong reaction from Pakistan, according to the official handout, without specifically defining what response such a threat might provoke.



Related Story