Bilawal Bhutto to lead Pakistan’s copycat peace delegation to counter India's terror accusations on global forums
New Delhi: In a desperate attempt to repair its image after global condemnation over its support for terrorism in the aftermath of Pahalgam terror attack and the consequent Indian military action (Operation Sindoor), Pakistan has announced that Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will lead its international peace mission.
Mirroring New Delhi’s move to send a delegation abroad to highlight terrorism, Islamabad has appointed Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari to counter the Indian delegation, which is helmed by Congress lawmaker and public intellectual Shashi Tharoor.
“I was contacted earlier today by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who requested that I lead a delegation to present Pakistan’s case for peace on the international stage. I am honoured to accept this responsibility and remain committed to serving Pakistan in these challenging times," Bilawal said in a Facebook post.
Top intelligence sources say the Pakistani Army views Bilawal’s Western education and fluency in English as assets making him “a fit case” to represent Islamabad against Tharoor and other members of the Indian delegation at the Global Peace Mission.
Sources reveal that Pakistan aims to use the mission to rebrand itself on the world stage—from a terror-sponsoring state to a peace-loving country.
The Army seeks to leverage the Bhutto family’s diplomatic legacy through Bilawal.
Bilawal’s mother, former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, and grandfather, former President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, had positioned the PPP as a party of peace and democracy.
Choosing Bilawal for this peace mission appears to be a calculated political and diplomatic strategy by Pakistan’s civilian and military leadership, according to media reports.
Bilawal, along with Maryam Nawaz (daughter of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif) and former Punjab CM Hamza Shahbaz, has portrayed himself as part of a new generation of young leaders in Pakistan.
Bilawal has consistently distanced himself from senior figures like Nawaz Sharif and current Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
While PM Shehbaz Sharif is seen as the military’s preferred administrator, Bilawal’s peace mission could serve as a soft-power diversion to cover Pakistan’s hybrid warfare tactics and ISI-backed terrorism, reports said.
Bilawal has three key tasks at the Global Peace Mission.
In a bid to counter India’s narrative that Pakistan exports terror after India’s airstrikes destroyed camps of Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad, Bilawal will be lobbying at forums such as the United Nations and European Union.
Bhutto will try to position Pakistan as a peaceful investment destination, citing the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) as an example.
The $62 billion CPEC project, part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative since 2015, connects Xinjiang in China to Gwadar Port in Pakistan through over 3,000 km of highways, railways, pipelines, and power projects.
He will try to present Kashmir as a case of humanitarian crisis and seek third-party mediation.
Top Indian government sources claim Bilawal has been made a scapegoat to allow the Pakistani Army to continue supporting terror proxy groups.
They warn Bilawal should proceed cautiously as his role could damage his credibility on world forums.
Pakistan’s peace mission is seen as hypocrisy—a PR stunt orchestrated by the Pakistani military to counter India’s efforts to brand Pakistan a terror state.
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