Pentagon report

The general deterioration that has taken place in the Pakistan-US relationship in the past few years boils down to two factors. First, the US believes that Pakistan is either outright supporting or turning a blind eye to the Afghan Taliban and Haqqani Network. Second, the US is naturally moving closer to India as the latter becomes an economic powerhouse capable of challenging US rival China for regional supremacy. A new Pentagon report on American involvement in the war in Afghanistan shows that both factors are likely to become even more pronounced in the near future. The first official comprehensive foreign policy statement of Trump’s presidency was also released, which urged Pakistan to demonstrate responsible stewardship of nuclear weapons and once again called on us to take action against militant groups. The Pentagon report called for a “fundamental change” in the way Pakistan deals with militant safe havens on its soil. While the Pentagon did say it would continue to work with the Pakistan Army, it also hinted at taking possible unilateral actions in the future. What form such actions take could determine the trajectory of the relationship between the two countries. Sporadic drone attacks have continued under the Donald Trump administration. Any intensification could lead to worsening ties, especially now that we are less dependent on US aid. Any attempt to send troops across the border would likely be seen as the final straw.

The Pentagon report, echoing Trump’s speech on Afghanistan earlier this year, calls India the country’s most reliable partner. It has also urged India to provide more economic, medical and civic support to the Afghans while also pointing out the military links they share. This report will naturally be unwelcome in Pakistan. Pakistan has long suspected India is using its closeness to Afghanistan to destabilise us, something which will only become worse should the US have its way. The recent inauguration of the Chabahar

Port in Iran, which gives India a route to Central Asia while bypassing Pakistan, shows how India and Afghanistan are planning for a future in which Pakistan stands isolated. Ultimately, this is going to backfire on both the US and Afghanistan as Pakistan is needed if a peace agreement is to be reached with the Afghan Taliban. What the US is trying to do, as National Security Adviser Lt Gen Nasir Janjua said at a conference last week, is to scapegoat Pakistan for its failures in Afghanistan. That leaves Pakistan in a position where it can no longer be reliant on the US for either its security or economic needs. We should still pursue cooperation wherever it is possible but the partnership was always a volatile one. Our expectations now should be appropriately realistic.