Lahore: Renowned Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir slammed the Shehbaz Sharif government following the decision of Donald Trump’s administration to include Pakistan on its recent ‘visa freeze’ list.
Raising questions on the Pakistani government and military leadership’s strategic competence, Mir pointed out the stark disconnect between Islamabad’s sycophantic outreach towards the US President and the harsh reality of Washington’s latest immigration crackdown, News18 reported.
Mir found it ironic t
hat Prime Minister Sharif and the military establishment — specifically referencing the “favourite field marshal” — had nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize twice last year.
Pakistan went all out to “romance” the Trump administration, including crediting it for de-escalating regional tensions, but the reward has been an indefinite pause on all immigrant visa processing from January 21, Mir remarked.
“India never nominated Trump for a Nobel Prize; in fact, New Delhi has maintained its principled distance on several US policies. Yet, India is excluded from this ban, while Pakistan sits at the top of the list,” Mir observed.
The veteran journalist said that US move amounts to a diplomatic humiliation for Pakistan, and flayed the Pakistani government for allowing the country to be categorised as a ‘high-risk’ nation whose citizens are deemed a potential burden on US welfare systems.