The US question

Pakistan's National Security Adviser Moeed Yusuf is in the US attempting to discuss Pakistan-US relations with his counterpart, Jake Sullivan. He has, during his visit, also met other officials. However, relations between the two countries remain in the grey, with Yusuf expressing the notion that Pakistan has other options if US President Joe Biden continues to ignore the country’s leadership. This statement can hardly be termed a judicious one even if the president of the United States has not spoken to the prime minister of Pakistan. Though Pakistan’s role in restoration of regional peace is and will remain significant, the US appears to have developed a specific liking for India, as became evident when the US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken recently visited India for two days and preferred to ignore Pakistan. In this situation, Pakistan needs to play its cards sagaciously.

Instead, Pakistan should be considering whether it is wise to talk about phone calls, or to move ahead with its own foreign policy agenda. After all, a personal phone call from Biden will not make a key difference to the overall situation. Pakistan's relations with the US have been strained at times, including during the early years of the Trump administration when aid to Pakistan was cut and Trump accused Pakistan of deceit, and possibly during the US election as well. Pakistan needs to be clear about what kind of relations it wants to maintain with the US and under what terms and conditions. We must strike a balance between toeing an absolute line from the US and negotiating a bilateral arrangement which is beneficial for both without compromising our interests. For a sovereign country it is imperative that it retain its self-respect while expecting concessions from others.

The US belief that Pakistan has some kind of influence over the Afghan Taliban has been denied by Pakistan; Islamabad has also categorically said that it will not allow the US to use air space over Pakistan. This essentially leaves little to talk about immediately. Instead, Pakistan should be looking at its foreign policy overall and working to ensure it can keep good ties with as many countries as possible. While this of course includes China, the US is also an important relationship. Pakistan's main quest must be to secure a relationship with all regional players which can work in Afghanistan at a crucial stage in that country. It needs to build better relations with Russia and Iran as well and keep pushing India towards a solution to the Kashmir issue. A broader, more mature and more wide-ranging foreign policy approach is in the best interest of Pakistan and its people.