Published 18:47 IST, January 4th 2020
Pompeo calls Gen Bajwa instead of Pak PM, netizens ask 'who's boss?'
Netizens wondered why Pompeo called an Army chief Bajwa instead of Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan or Foreign Affairs Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi.
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The United States started making diplomatic efforts soon after the death of Iran’s elite Quds Force chief General Qassem Soleimani was announced on December 3. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had a series of conversations with leaders around the world including Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, French Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Iraqi President Barham Salih.
Pompeo took to Twitter to inform about the discussions, where he emphasised that US President Donald Trump ordered the killing to protect U.S. personnel and interests abroad. He maintained that de-escalation is the United States’ principal goal. However, one of Pompeo’s tweets immediately drew the attention of Twitterati when the Secretary of State said that he spoke to Pakistan's Chief of Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa.
#Pakistan's Chief of Staff General Bajwa and I spoke today about U.S. defensive action to kill Qassem Soleimani. The #Iran regime’s actions in the region are destabilizing and our resolve in protecting American interests, personnel, facilities, and partners will not waver.
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) January 3, 2020
Power of Bajwa
Netizens wondered why Pompeo called an Army chief instead of Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan or Foreign Affairs Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi. It has not been a secret that the Pakistani army influences the country’s domestic politics and politics. Social media quickly figured out the reason and took potshots at Pakistan’s Prime Minister.
Just in case you want to know who the US thinks is boss in Pakistan: https://t.co/UQ1bvRguTI
— Rezaul Hasan Laskar (@Rezhasan) January 3, 2020
US SecState speaks to foreign ministers of China, Germany, France, UK etc, Afghan President.... But Pakistan Army Chief? https://t.co/Bts18trrsC
— Suhasini Haidar (@suhasinih) January 3, 2020
This tweet proves who runs Pakistan. https://t.co/8t1XNYofWm
— Manas Sen Gupta (@saneverse) January 4, 2020
After Soleimani’s death, Trump said that the United States terminated him because he was plotting “imminent and sinister attacks on American diplomats and military personnel”. In a televised briefing, he added that Iran’s top commander made the death of innocent people his “sick passion”, contributing to terrorist plots as far away as New Delhi and London. The US President emphasised that under his leadership, ISIS territorial caliphate was destroyed and their leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was killed by American Special Operations Forces.
18:47 IST, January 4th 2020