At the meeting with the US President Donald Trump this week, the head of the Pakistani army Asim Munir reportedly raised concerns that separatist and jihadist militants on the Pakistan-Iranian border could take advantage of any collapse of authority in Iran.
Trump on Wednesday at an unprecedented meeting hosted the Pakistani main army field marshal Asim Munir in the White House. The lunch meeting was the first time the US President hosted the head of the Pakistani army.
The Pakistani army said in a statement that they both discussed the trade, economic development and cryptocurrency during a two -hour meeting and also exchanged opinions on the tension between Israel and Iran.
Pakistan feared …
In particular, anti-Iranian and anti-pacist clothing operates on both sides of 560 kilometers (900 km), Reuters reported.
Israeli officials have repeatedly stated that they are trying to destabilize the Iranian government or see it.
According to the report, while Pakistan fears that he is worried about chaos from Iran, he is also concerned about the precedent of Israel about the attack on the nuclear installation of another country.
After Wednesday’s lunch at the White House with the Pakistani Chief of the Army, Field Marshal Asim Munir, Trump said, “They are not happy out of nowhere”, referring to the opinions of Pakistan on the conflict of Israel.
The Pakistani army said on Thursday that they both discussed Iran, “with both leaders emphasize the importance of conflict solution”.
Pakistan condemned the Israeli attack on Iran as a violation of international law.
“It is a very serious problem for us what is happening in our fraternal country of Iran,” said Shafqat Ali Khan, a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Pakistan on Thursday. “This threatens the whole regional safety structure, which deeply affects us.”
Militant groups welcomed shocks
Some militant groups on the border welcomed shocks.
Jaish Al-Aad (Jaa), an Iranian jihadist group created from ethnic Baluch and Sunni Muslim minorities and that works from Pakistan, said that the conflict of Israel and Iran was a great opportunity.
“Jaish al-Aad expands the hand of brotherhood and friendship to all Iranian people and calls on all people, especially people from Baluchistan, as well as the armed forces to join the ranks of resistance,” he said by the agency, declared in the declaration of June 13.
On the contrary, Pakistan is afraid that separatist militants from his own Baluch minority, based in Iran, will also try to intensify the attacks.
“There is a fear of unavailable spaces that would be fertile for terrorist groups,” said Maleeha Lodhi, a former Pakistanan ambassador to Washington.
Pakistan has unstable boundaries with Taliban-Afghanistan and archival opponent. She doesn’t want to add another volatile border to her long border with Iran.
The Iranian-Pakistani border region is inhabited by Ethnic Baluch, a minority in both countries that have long complained about discrimination and launched a separatist movement. On the side of Pakistan there is a province called Balochistan and Sistan-Blochistan is in Iran.
Until the Israeli bombing of Iran, Tehran was closer to the Pakistani archive rival India. Pakistan and Iran even traded air strikes last year and accused of receiving the Baluch militants. However, the attack on Iran increased the alliance because India did not condemn the bomber campaign of Israel.
China also said it was deeply concerned about the security situation in Balochistan, focusing on an investment program in the field of infrastructure in Beijing in Pakistan, focused on the new Chinese port of Gwadar. Baluch militant groups in Pakistan have previously focused on Chinese staff and projects.
On the Iranian side of Tehran’s border at various times he accused Pakistan, the nations of the Gulf, Israel and the United States by supporting anti-Iranian baluch groups.
Simbal Khan, an analyst based in Islamabad, said that different groups of Baluch could turn into a “larger baluchistan” movement trying to earn a new nation from Baluch regions of Pakistan and Iran.
“Everyone will fight together if it blows,” Khan said.
(With Reuters inputs)
(Tagstotranslate) Iranian-Pakistan border
