Pakistan under no circumstances would join military alliance against Iran: Khawaja Asif

Pakistan under no circumstances would join military alliance against Iran: Khawaja Asif

Shiite News: Defense Minister Khawaja Asif assured the National Assembly on Tuesday that Pakistan under no circumstances would join a military alliance against Iran, contrary to speculations doing the round because of the country’s support for a Saudi-led coalition of 34 Muslim nations aimed at curtailing the spread of extremism and terrorism in the region.

Federal Minister Khawaja Asif said in a policy statement before the house: “After Iran, Pakistan has the second largest Shia population in the world, so how can we even think of joining an anti-Shia military alliance.”

Above all, the defense minister claimed, Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah – the founder of the nation – was also an adherent of a Shia sect, just like many others who had played a key role in the development of this country.

Acknowledging the existence of fault lines between the different sects of Islam, the minister stressed that the government’s efforts would remain focused on promoting religious harmony, both within the country and elsewhere in the region. In the over 20-minute speech, he clarified several times that Pakistan would never commit its military to any alliance against another Muslim country.

There were serious speculations regarding the Saudi led 34 countries alliance, especially Shia Muslims were particularly concerned, but Defense Minister’s statement at such a time is appreciable. This proves that neither the issue is a Shia-Sunni conflict nor there is any such conflict in Pakistan rather both Shia and Sunni people live peacefully in Pakistan but the House of Saud, which follows Wahhabi extremist ideology, has been trying to create differences in our country through their funded seminaries.