QUETTA: Political observers were stunned when the Afghan forces launched a surprised attack on two villages Killi Luqman and Killi Jehangir on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border at Chaman killing 12 people and wounding 40 more. The attack came at a time when Pakistan Government had engaged Afghanistan in a series of talks by dispatching goodwill missions in the shape of Parliamentary and military delegations. All the delegates reported well and found the Afghan response positive in finding ways and means to settle all differences in an amicable manner.

According to reports reaching from the border area, the Afghan officials had raised objection over the conduct of census in two border villages and the controversy continued for the past two days claiming both the villages are part of Afghanistan and not Pakistan. There was a reported lull in the talks when the Afghan forces suddenly attacked the two villages using light weapons in firing and targeting the Frontier Corps personnel and the civilians at the larger scale. The Afghan forces also dropped shells on the civilian population killing 12 people and injuring more than 40 people.

The attack on the border settlements was supposed to be planned meticulously as it was carried out at 3.a.m or before dawn. It indicated the real and sinister designs of the Afghan forces to initiate a bigger trouble on the cover of population census in the border villages. The Foreign Office Spokesman lost no time and blamed Afghanistan for working on the instigation of India with a sinister design to open the western front against Pakistan using Afghanistan and its forces.

The Afghan rulers were fully aware about the disastrous consequences of initiating a bigger trouble on the common border at the behest of the Indian Government or the Indian security agency RAW. Still the Afghan forces were involved in unprovoked firing and shelling on the Pakistani settlements on this side of international frontier.

On the Pakistani side, the Friendship Gate was closed for an indefinite period suspending movement of people between the two countries. The movement of goods, mainly merchandized goods, had been stopped and trucks carrying cargo were stopped away from the Chaman border.

In economic terms, Afghanistan is the prime loser in the bilateral trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan as Pakistan is importing the fruits on a very big scale for being the biggest market of the Afghan fruits to help the Afghan economy in a big way. At the same time, Pakistan is the biggest exporters of food and other primary products to Afghanistan meeting the growing demand for wheat and rice besides other eatables.  Afghanistan is a food deficit country and heavily relying on the food imports from Pakistan to cover the food deficit.

Knowing the full extent of possible damage to its economy and its economic interests, why Afghanistan opted to instigate a trouble on a non-issue? Some observers on this side of the border believed that it was an intelligence operation against Pakistan meant to spoil the bilateral relations between the two countries at a time when Pakistan Government was involved in making hard efforts to repair the damages and normalize relations between Kabul and Islamabad.

Spokesman of the Foreign Office blamed India for using Afghanistan as a proxy in creating instability and uncertainty in the entire region. His opinion was also endorsed by the Defence Minister Khawaja Asif blaming India of using Afghanistan to fulfill its nefarious designs in the entire region. The same thinking is prevailing among the political leaders and people of Pakistan that India is using Afghanistan as a proxy against Pakistan and also making efforts to destabilize the entire region.

Such a situation may attract the attention of foreign powers to intervene in this region to defend their illegitimate interests at the cost of the regional countries. According to the Iranian media, more than 60 warships from the United States and its NATO allies are present in the West Asia region. Besides the warships, there are three aircraft carrier one each from the United States, Britain and France to deal with a possible crisis in the region.

Most of the warships of the Western countries are said to be patrolling close to Gwadar and the Straits of Hormuz on the other end of Mekran Coast. Thus tension is looming large in the whole region of West Asia while India is making its borders with Pakistan constantly tense and uneasy.

The relations between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran had become tense for the past few weeks and both the countries are locked in a media war. Pakistan is sharing long maritime and land borders with Iran and the Gulf countries and thus the whole area is in the hotbed of the regional crisis. The unpredictable situation makes Balochistan a frontline state in the Gulf crisis.

It is important to mention that President Trump is expected to announce his Afghan policy in weeks to combat the Taliban and IS militants in Afghanistan or in the region. The US policy is expected to be more aggressive and Taliban specific to eliminate the menace, once for all. It was earlier announced that US and NATO allies are sending thousands of more troops to beef up defences of the Afghan forces fighting the hostile elements deep inside Afghanistan.

Some analysts believed that the US will rely more on its air power using drone and direct bombing by warplanes on all possible hideouts and concentration of Taliban forces and IS militants. Most of the Taliban bases are located close to the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and there will be a great risk of carrying out drone attacks on the Pakistani territories also on the pretext that there are hideouts of Taliban or the IS militants.

Thus Pakistan will be in a more precarious position to deal with the extended crisis. There is a full awareness among the people and decision-makers seeking an urgent thaw with Afghanistan on a priority basis besides dealing with threats from India.