Islamabad may be without US envoy till second quarter of this year

ISLAMABAD: The outgoing US administration’s designated ambassador for Pakistan, William Edward Bill Todd, wouldn’t be able to complete requisite formalities back home, including Congress hearing any soon, and it is likely that Islamabad will be without a US ambassador till the second quarter of this year. Till recently, William Todd was acting Under Secretary of State for Management in Washington. Well-placed diplomatic sources told The News here on Monday that the appointment of William Edward could be called off as new administration would like to have an envoy of its choice in Islamabad.

Interestingly, Pakistan has been without a full-fledged ambassador since August 2018 when ambassador David Hale was transferred and posted as Under Secretary for Political Affairs in Washington.

Ambassador Paul Jones became Charge d'Affaires of the US Embassy in Pakistan immediately after the departure of David Hale. He left Pakistan after completing his about two years tenure in Islamabad. Since then, Ms Angela Aggeler is acting Charge d'Affaires in Islamabad.

The sources pointed out that William Edward Bill Todd was designated ambassador for Pakistan last year, but his movement couldn’t be processed by the State Department due to unknown reasons.

With the change of administration in Washington, it has been speculated that Joe Biden administration would like to have an ambassador of its choice in Islamabad. The possibility of change in nomination couldn’t be ruled out as some other senior diplomat would be designated for Pakistan in place of William Edward, the sources said.

Diplomatic observers are of the view that the US did not appoint a full-fledged ambassador after the departure of Ambassador Hale. Analysts believe that Pakistan-US ties have not been on a positive trajectory for quite some time despite hectic two-way engagements.

As per diplomatic norms and principle of reciprocity, the US was required to send a full ambassador to Pakistan; however, it preferred to run the mission with a Charge d'Affaires. It was for the first time during the past few decades that the US did not appoint an ambassador to Pakistan. Unlike, Pakistan always chose to run its US mission with a fully empowered ambassador, including incumbent Dr Asad Majeed Khan, who has been tipped to be the new Foreign Secretary in mid of this year.

The US ostensibly is not happy with Pakistan for latter’s close ties with China. Likewise, Afghanistan is yet another issue that seeks to divide bilateral opinion.

Hale was the United States Ambassador to Pakistan from August 5, 2015 to August 30, 2018. He was the last US diplomat and career foreign service officer who was ambassador with complete authority in Islamabad. He is currently serving as the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs in Washington.