Islamabad MOU proves Pakistan’s rising clout, Modi’s failures: Congress
New Delhi: The Congress on Thursday said the newly released 14-point “Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding” between the United States and Iran reflects Pakistan’s growing diplomatic influence and exposes serious failures in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign policy.
According to Kashmir Media Service, Congress general secretary and Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh said the very naming of the agreement as the “Islamabad MOU” highlighted Pakistan’s enhanced standing in regional and global affairs.
“The fact that it is called the Islamabad MOU shows the new-found regional standing and global influence of Pakistan, a country that had once been isolated on the global stage by Dr. Manmohan Singh following the Mumbai terror attacks in November 2008,” Ramesh said.
“This is a severe setback to both the substance and style of Prime Minister Modi’s foreign policy. Pakistan is now even more deeply embedded in the geopolitical and security architecture of West Asia which has grave implications for India.” Ramesh said the agreement, if implemented in letter and spirit, could mark a major diplomatic advance, but cautioned that its success was far from guaranteed.
“For the time being, all that can be said is that the next 60 days will be crucial. It also has the potential for becoming a Memorandum of Misunderstanding from both sides,” he added. The Congress leader claimed the MOU offers significant gains to Iran, which demonstrated resilience despite military pressure, while Gulf Cooperation Council countries that bore the weight of Iran’s counter-attacks have cautiously welcomed it but will rethink regional partnerships.
Ramesh described the deal as a “definite defeat” for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who he said stands isolated internationally even as President Trump has expressed anger and frustration with him. He said Modi remains “steadfast in his support of Mr. Netanyahu’s actions in the region – including in Lebanon, Gaza, and the occupied West Bank,” calling such “blind devotion” costly for India.
“The limits of military power have been once again exposed. Mr. Modi’s continuing appeasement of Mr. Trump – the latest evidence of which is the MEA readout of the Trump-Modi bilateral meeting last night – is shameful and actually anti-national,” he said.
