Vienna, May 5 — Austrian military analyst and historian Tom Cooper told ANI he sees Pakistan’s diplomatic role in the escalating West Asia crisis as essentially marginal. Cooper argued Islamabad’s public claims of high-level mediation between Washington and Tehran overstate its influence and that domestic limitations and short-term tactics prevent Pakistan from shaping the wider regional dynamic.
Cooper said Pakistan projects itself as a significant negotiator but in practice has been courting the Trump administration for immediate gains rather than building lasting strategic leverage. He accused Islamabad of trying to exploit the US lobbying environment to advance issues such as Kashmir, but said those efforts have produced little concrete success. He also described Pakistan as constrained by internal power dynamics, calling the country “de facto hostage of its own armed forces” and citing political and administrative incompetence as obstacles to meaningful international engagement.
Beyond Pakistan, Cooper painted a picture of the region being driven by other actors. He argued that Israel and the United Arab Emirates are pursuing an agenda to extend their influence across the Middle East, seeking to reshape the region into weaker, easier-to-control parastates and exert pressure on states including Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Turkey.
On US involvement, Cooper said Washington has become entangled by backing Israel and lacks an honourable exit strategy. He suggested the US is attempting to reframe the confrontation as a broader regional clash—particularly between Iran and its neighbours such as the UAE—to avoid direct military escalation while remaining aligned with Israeli objectives.
Cooper also criticised European leadership for short-term thinking and risky energy dependencies. He accused European governments of prioritising the status quo over long-term planning, signing long-term contracts that tie large economies to unreliable suppliers without adequate strategic analysis. He urged Europe to diversify energy supplies, invest in renewables, and maintain dependable fossil-fuel access during the transition. Cooper added there is sufficient global oil and gas capacity, including in Africa and parts of Asia, but he blamed producers and intermediaries for keeping prices artificially high.
Overall, Cooper’s assessment frames Pakistan as peripheral in the current West Asia dynamics: a country attempting to project diplomatic relevance but hampered by internal constraints and limited strategic weight, while regional and global powers set the agenda and shape outcomes.
