Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif made remarks on Islamabad’s historic alignment with Washington, saying that the country had been “used like toilet paper and then discarded” after serving American strategic interests in Afghanistan.
Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif made remarks on Islamabad’s historic alignment with Washington, saying in Parliament that the country had been “used like toilet paper and then discarded” after serving American strategic interests in Afghanistan. Addressing the National Assembly during a heated debate on terrorism, days after suicide bombing at a Shia mosque in Islamabad, Asif spoke on Pakistan’s foreign policy in recent years.
“We took part in two wars that were fought on the soil of Afghanistan,” Asif told lawmakers, referring to Pakistan’s involvement during the Soviet-Afghan war and the US-led war on terror.
Revisiting the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan in 1979, Asif argued that it took place “at the invitation of the government in Kabul” and claimed that the dominant narrative of a full-scale invasion was shaped by Washington.
Pakistan, he said, had plunged into those conflicts “in the name of Islam and religion”, but in reality, two former military dictators sought international legitimacy and the patronage of a global superpower.
“These were not our wars; they were superpower wars,” he said, adding that Pakistan and its land were used and then discarded “like toilet paper.”
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The defence minister warned that the country is now grappling with the consequences of those decisions, describing terrorism in Pakistan as the “blowback of mistakes committed by dictators in the past.” He said that successive governments failed to internalise the lessons of history, instead oscillating between global capitals for short-term gains.
“For our own interests, we sometimes turn to Washington, sometimes to Moscow, and sometimes to Britain. We have built strong franchises here, which was not the case 30 or 40 years ago,” Asif said.
Drawing attention to what he portrayed as the transactional nature of US-Pakistan ties, Asif recalled former US President Bill Clinton’s brief 2000 stopover in Islamabad — a visit lasting only a few hours at the tail end of a longer India trip. Clinton’s meeting with then military ruler Pervez Musharraf, framed around US concerns on democracy, non-proliferation and militancy, underscored the imbalance in the relationship.
Parliament passed a resolution condemning the deadly suicide attack at Imambargah Qasr-e-Khadijatul Kubra in Islamabad’s Tarlai area, where a bomber killed 31 worshippers and injured 169 during Friday prayers. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility.
Thousands flooded the capital’s graveyards as funeral prayers were held across the city. Grief quickly turned into anger, with families demanding accountability.
“What happened yesterday has left us extremely angry and deeply hurt,” said Bushra Rahmani, whose brother was among the wounded.
Asif criticised divisions even in the face of terrorism. “It is very important that we have a national identity on which no one disagrees,” he said, taking aim at political figures who, he claimed, avoided attending the funerals for partisan reasons.