‘US to continue counter-terrorism mission in Afghanistan after troops withdrawal’

Islamabad : Dr Kenneth Holland, former President, American University of Afghanistan, has said that US will continue its counter-terrorism mission in Afghanistan after troops withdrawal but over the horizon and in this regard may require Pakistan’s help in the form of its bases to fight against ISIS and terrorists in Afghanistan.

Dr Holland was addressing a virtual panel discussion on ‘Biden Administration: options & challenges for Pakistan-US Relations’ organised here by Centre for Strategic Perspectives at the Institute of Strategic Studies in collaboration with Area Study Centre for Africa, North & South America, Quaid-i-Azam University. Admitting that Pakistan had been a critical partner in every way for the US throughout the peace process, Dr Holland said that the importance may reduce once the US troops leave Afghanistan.

Dr Hassan Abbas from NDU observed that counter-terrorism is no more a top priority of the Biden Administration. Washington’s interest in South Asia remains important, and the US is not walking out of the region but is only refocusing, he said adding that the security relationship between Pakistan and the US had been problematic throughout its existence. Reflecting on the issue of Indo-US relations, Dr Abbas stated that the Indo-US relations have been on the rise for the past many years and the reason is that the top tech and AI companies, as well as American businesses have the opportunity to talk with Indians in terms of investments and in return emphasising its strategic relationship.

Dr Rasul Bakhsh Rais from LUMS said that the future of Kabul depends on how the endgame plays out in Afghanistan. Pakistan has to be mindful whether it has the capability, capacity and the ability to deal with an Afghanistan that relapses into a civil war. He was of the view that Pakistan does not have the means either diplomatic, economic or security to deal with an unstable and violent Afghanistan. On the question of normalization of relations between Pakistan and India, he was of the view that there is a desire in the US that Pakistan and India should work to normalise their relations, however, US will not like to move beyond pushing both the sides to the table. Dr Hussain Shaheed Soherwordi from University of Peshawar was of the view that Pakistan’s top priority should be to fix its economy which will be illusive without a good security situation. The latter will be a challenge if Pakistan has an unstable neighbour on its west. While Pakistan and Kabul have a sincere will to work for the better, this should also be witnessed in the trade and economic sector.

Earlier in his introductory remarks, Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry, Director-General, ISS, said that historically, the relationship between Pakistan and the US was based on security issues and had been nothing less than a rollercoaster ride. The Biden administration is losing interest in two most critical areas in which Pakistan was relevant -- counter-terrorism and Afghanistan.