In a staggering moment of self-reflection and blunt honesty, Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif delivered a scathing speech in the National Assembly, dissecting the country’s long-standing relationship with the United States. In what is being called the most transparent admission of Pakistan’s foreign policy failures, Asif accused Washington of “exploiting” Islamabad for its tactical gains. “America used Pakistan like toilet paper and threw us away once their objectives were achieved,” Asif stated, highlighting the deep-seated resentment within the Pakistani establishment.

Addressing the Parliament on Wednesday, Asif admitted that Pakistan’s decision to align with the US following the September 11, 2001, attacks was detrimental to the nation’s long-term stability. He characterized Islamabad’s involvement in the two Afghan wars as a “historic mistake,” asserting that the rampant terrorism plaguing Pakistan today is the direct offspring of these flawed past policies. He did not mince words while criticizing former military dictators—Zia-ul-Haq and Pervez Musharraf—accusing them of dragging the country into a foreign war not for Islam, but to appease a global superpower.

The Defense Minister further lamented that the concept of ‘Jihad’ was misused to send young Pakistanis into a conflict that wasn’t theirs. He even pointed out that the national education system was altered to justify these wars, the toxic remnants of which continue to fuel extremism in society. Asif noted that since the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, Pakistan has been left to deal with the aftermath: unprecedented violence, economic collapse, and social instability. Concluding his speech, he urged the nation to stop blaming others and accept its own mistakes, stating that the damage caused by these strategic blunders is irreparable.