*ISLAMABAD: *President Donald Trump’s senior aide visited Islamabad forthe second time in less than a month. Ambassador Alice Wells, theDepartment of State’s Senior Bureau Official, in a daylong trip held talkswith Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua.
Reportedly US top diplomat again asked Pakistan to do more but Pakistan hasrefused to bow down before the US pressure and talks ended in a stalemate.
The Foreign Office only issued a picture showing Wells and Janjua shakinghands before the talks. The US Embassy did release a statement but thatalso offered little insight into the latest round of discussions.
The statement, nevertheless, said Ambassador Wells in her meeting with theforeign secretary discussed the status of the US South Asia strategy andefforts to make progress on regional security and stability.
But a senior Pakistani official familiar with the talks told leadingdaily that there was no tangible progress as far as finding a common groundon Afghanistan endgame was concerned.
“Talks remained inconclusive,” the official said, adding that the onlypositive thing was that the two sides were still talking to each other.
At the heart of the controversy is Trump administration’s insistence thatPakistan take decisive action against alleged safe havens of the ‘Haqqaninetwork, Quetta Shura and Lashkar-e-Taiba’, according to another official.
“Pakistan does not share the US perspective. We believe that we have takenadequate action against all groups without any discrimination,” said theofficial.
While the US may have its own list of demands, Pakistan is also notsatisfied with the US response so far regarding addressing Islamabad’sconcerns on issues such as growing footprint of Indian secret agencies inAfghanistan. At the same time, Islamabad is upset over the manner withwhich the Trump administration is blaming it for the current mess inAfghanistan.
Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have been on downward spiralsince Trump announced a new strategy for Afghanistan and South Asia. Trumpwhile lashing out at Pakistan for ‘not doing enough’ sought greater rolefor India in Afghanistan.
Relations hit an all-time low when Trump in his New Year tweet accusedPakistan of ‘lies and deceit’. His administration subsequently suspendedthe entire security assistance in a bid to punish Pakistan for ‘not takinga decisive action’ against the alleged hideouts of certain militant groups.
Tensions continued to simmer between the two countries in recent weeks withthe latest move by Washington to impose travel restrictions on thePakistani diplomats posted in the US.
Officials said the foreign secretary did raise the issue with AmbassadorWells. Another hiccup is the involvement of a US defence attaché in a roadaccident in which a 22-year-old young Pakistan was killed.