As Pakistan has assumed the role of a mediator to resolve the conflict between Iran and the US, geopolitical risk advisor and former US Army combatant, Colonel Douglas Macgregor (retd) has questioned its credibility citing severe internal challenges faced by the South Asian country. Macgregor also believes that Pakistan would not be viewed as a neutral party by Israel. Track updates on Iran US war
Macgregor suggested that India could play a credible role in facilitating dialogue due to its diplomatic relationships across different geopolitical blocs.
“For the Pakistanis to offer help is sort of like a man who is in a burning building offering you a spare room in the building. Pakistan’s not going to be viewed in any way, shape or form as neutral by the Israelis,” Macgregor was quoted as saying by ANI, as he pointed to Pakistan’s precarious economic situation.
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“Why would you go to Pakistan to Islamabad to try and close a deal, if you will, on ending the war? That’s an impossibility. It strikes me as just ludicrous nonsense,” he added.
“Pakistan is not what I would call a civilisational state. It’s part of a civilisational complex. But India itself is one of these core civilisational states, which is desperately needed, you know, in the world today,” he added.
‘Israel unlikely to trust Pakistan’
He said that Israel could view Pakistan as part of the problem and that Pakistan is financially insolvent.
Col Macgregor said Israel is unlikely to trust mediation efforts led by Pakistan. “If the Israelis heard that they were supposed to show up in Islamabad for a meeting, I think they’d laugh it off. This is ridiculous. Why should we trust anything those people say?” he asked.
Praise for PM Modi
Heaping praise on India, he said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in a position to ‘offer real help’, adding that Modi commands global respect and maintains working relationships with multiple international leaders.
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“Prime Minister Modi is someone who enjoys a great deal of respect and confidence across the globe. He is someone who is at ease with (Russian President) Vladimir Putin in Moscow. He is comfortable talking to the leadership in Tehran. He recently visited Israel, and the Israelis are comfortable with him. We are comfortable with India,” Col Macgregor said.
“I would urge Prime Minister Modi to talk to his advisors and call President Donald Trump…India itself is one of these core civilizational states, a large and powerful continental state…I think we would be better off if India exerted a great deal more influence in a place like the Indian Ocean and its surroundings,” Col Macgregor was quoted as saying.
India’s position in geopolitical transformation
The US war expert said the world is going through a major transformation, and India cannot afford to remain a passive observer in the evolving geopolitical landscape.
“India cannot afford to remain a spectator on the sidelines in this conflict because this war is not ending in two weeks. It’s not ending in two months,” Macgregor said.
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He said there is no easy solution to the conflict. “There is no off-ramp right now, and we desperately need an off-ramp….”
The war in the Middle East has been going on for a month now and uncertainty looms as US President Donald Trump is pushing his talks claims on one side, and the US on the other side is mulling to move around 10,000 ground troops to the Middle East. This has given rise to speculations that US may be preparing for a ground invasion as Iran also responded saying that they have a million combatants ready for any rising situation.