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The Guardian view on strongmen and straw men: south Asian crises over Russia’s war | Editorial
It may be a conceit to think that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will shape the contours of a coming wider global struggle between autocracy and democracy
Flying from Islamabad to Colombo gives a bird’s-eye view of the fallout from war over the subcontinent. The three nations under the route are all governed by nationalists who won office by trading in populism. Having gained power, such politicians tend to have a messianic faith in their capacity to effect sweeping change. This belief is being tested, perhaps to destruction, in south Asian democracies with a combined population of 1.6 billion people.
Pakistan’s prime minister, Imran Khan – who was in Moscow as the tanks rolled into Ukraine – claimed last week that the US had “threatened” him and tried to instigate regime change. Mr Khan has been at loggerheads with the west since Pakistan abstained in the UN resolution condemning Moscow’s attack. Over the weekend the nation’s army – long considered the power behind the throne – openly sided with Washington. Mr Khan has refused to leave quietly. Instead of facing a no-confidence vote that he would have almost certainly lost, he precipitated a political crisis by dissolving parliament. Pakistan’s judges now have the casting vote on the prime minister’s fate.
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