ISLAMABAD – Pakidtan and the US relations have always been marred bymistrust and misunderstanding and especially ever since the assumption ofpower by Donald Trump, the ties are incessantly on the downslide.
The fact of the matter is that the relationship spanning over many decadeshas only seen the super-power brow beating Pakistan and making it scapegoatfor its own failure especially in Afghanistan. Ours is the only countrywhich has given unprecedented sacrifices both human and material in the waron terror but the US mantra of ‘do more’ has never stopped.
To pressurize Pakistan, the US has always used different tactics such assanctions and cutting aid. Firstly, it cut military and economic aid to thecountry and now reportedly it has quietly started cutting scores ofPakistani officers from coveted training and educational programmes thathave been a hallmark of bilateral military relations for more than adecade.
Such a posture on the part of Washington will not serve any purpose butfurther create mistrust in relations. Whilst the US has also stoppedmilitary reimbursements under coalition support fund for the expensesincurred by Pakistan in the war on terror, the US officials are going astep ahead and now trying to stop the International Monetary Fund fromgiving any bailout package to Pakistan.
The very statement of the US Secretary of State is on the record and now across party group of sixteen US Senators has also urged the TrumpAdministration to block the IMF from bailing out the countries that haveobtained loans from China under its infrastructure development plan.
The very statements emanating from the US clearly reflect that it is notat all happy over the One Belt and One Road Initiative of the visionaryChinese President Xi Jinping- the complete realization of which will seedifferent regions of the world getting connected and harnessing theireconomic potential.
One fully understands as to why the project is being opposed as the rise ofChina and other countries in the region is not digestible to the US whichhas yet not come out of its unipolar and lone superpower mindset. Anyway asregards its relations with Pakistan is concerned, the US’s unilateralpronouncements, arbitrary deadlines and shifting goalposts will prove to becounterproductive in addressing common threats.
Both Pakistan and the US need each other for revival of peace andstability to Afghanistan but to move forward, the US will have to reviewits current policy and adopt collaborative approach to achieve the goals ofpeace and stability in the region.