United States of America remains one of the first countries to have established diplomatic ties with Pakistan. Although the relationship dates back to October 20, 1947, it can be extrapolated that the relations have been based strictly on military and economic support. The diplomatic relations between two countries have been marked with periods of challenges and opportunities.
The time when Pakistan got independence was the time when World War 2 had just ended and the era of the cold war had started to divide the world into two different schools of thought, ways of governance to be precise, capitalism and communism. Pakistan had to face the difficult question of either siding with the Soviet Union or the United States. It was not just a matter of choosing one between the two superpowers of the time. It was a future defining decision of either adopting capitalism or the communism.
Even though both capitalism and communism, in theory, are but just two different forms of governance each with its own pros and cons, but the opposition of each bloc against the other was so strong that they were bent on destroying each other. Neutrality was not an option. At least not for a nascent, cash-strapped country like Pakistan with a bigger and powerful enemy on its border, eager to annihilate it from existence.
Pakistan opted to join the bloc led by United States. Pakistan’s first prime minister, Liaquat Ali Khan visited United States to meet President Harry S Truman. It is alleged that during PM Khan’s first visit to US, President Truman requested Pakistan’s premier to let the CIA formulate a base in Pakistan, strictly to keep an eye on the activities of the Soviet Union, a request which was not granted by Khan at the time. Later, Pakistan played a crucial role in arranging the President Nixon’s visit to China in 1972 which led to the commencement of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
Despite a worsening of relations following the election of the left-oriented Pakistan People’s Party under Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, relations quickly improved and deepened during Operation Cyclone in the 1980s, which was directed against Soviet expansion in Central Asia and South Asia by funding and training Muslim fundamentalists to combat the Soviet Union. Relations once again soured after the Collapse of Soviet Union, when the United States approved sanctions against Pakistan by passing the Pressler amendment, which was enacted against Pakistan for its nuclear weapons program, which was initiated after India detonated a nuclear device in 1974.
The US sanctions were viewed in Pakistan as a betrayal. The belief got hold in the minds of Pakistanis that the US used Pakistan as a tool to end Soviet Union and communism.
Pakistan once again assumed an important role in American geopolitical interests in the region following the attacks of September 11th, 2001, and the subsequent War on Terror. Relations were strengthened as the United States named Pakistan as a major non-NATO ally in 2002 – which allowed for the release of over twenty billion dollars of aid to Pakistan. American recovery efforts following the 2005 Kashmir Earthquake were widely appreciated by the Pakistani public.
Relations began to strain again as both sides began to criticize one another’s strategy on the War on Terror, with the United States government frequently accusing Pakistan of harboring members of the Afghan Taliban and Quetta Shura, while Pakistan has alleged that the United States has done little to control security in Kunar Province of Afghanistan, where Pakistan’s most-wanted terrorist, Mullah Fazlullah is believed to be hiding.
Furthermore, as a result of the Lahore incident and the US’ unilateral operation inside Pakistan which killed the al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, followed by the Salala incident, relations between the two countries touched the all-time low.
However, since that, the relationship is gradually on an upward trend.
Even though the relationship has improved, the element of mistrust still looms over it. In a February 2011 speech, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton lauded what she termed a “dramatically expanded” counterterrorism and intelligence cooperation with Pakistan, while also conceding that “there are significant differences to overcome” and that “distrust lingers on both sides” of the bilateral relationship.
Despite numerous serious problems in the relationship, the United States provides extensive economic, scientific, and military assistance to Pakistan. Pakistan occupies a strategic position in the United States’ interests in Central and South Asia. As part of the Obama administration’s strategy for stabilizing Afghanistan, its Pakistan policy has included a nonmilitary aid to improve the lives of the Pakistani people.
Daniel Markey, in his book, “No exit from Pakistan”, analyses the situation between US and Pak and says that a stable, democratic, prosperous Pakistan that combats religious militancy is considered vital to U.S. interests. A stable Pakistan means a stable region which means US interests in the region will be safe.
Pakistani officials complain that Washington is insufficiently concerned with Islamabad’s regional security perspective and arrogant in its routine breaches of Pakistani sovereignty. They offer criticism that Washington is not moving to provide greater market access for Pakistani exports. U.S. unlike China, is not willing to take firm steps in bringing Pakistan’s economy towards self-sufficiency.
On the other hand, the US is taking leaps and bounds in its economic relationship with Pakistan’s rival, India. No such concrete and futuristic steps have been taken when it comes to Pakistan. This gives heed to the belief that the US deliberately wants to keep Pakistan dependent on its aid so that Washington could use the leverage to make Pakistan do what it wants.
Having said all this and acknowledging the fact that geographically US and Pakistan are poles apart from each other, they however share the same interest of combating terrorism and extremism. This is a far more important basis of forming a relationship than any other base. Because, economic progress and terrorism are antithesis to one another. To win this difficult war, both countries have to be on the same page.
And for this to happen, the US will have to treat Pakistan with respect and as an equal partner. Also, Pakistan too, as it has shown with its ongoing Zarb-e-Azb operation against the terrorists, has to continue to stop differentiating between terrorists and extremists. Terrorists are terrorism, extremists are extremists, whether they’re against Pakistan, United States, or Afghanistan.
