BEIJING:The United States’ decision to suspend security assistance toPakistan has dealt a heavy blow to the already deteriorating relationshipbetween Washington and Islamabad.
It will also cast a shadow on US efforts to combat terrorism inAfghanistan, as Pakistan plays a pivotal role in the anti-terrorismcampaign in the region, according to an article published by China Daily onThursday.
Days after US President’s controversial tweet, US Ambassador to the UnitedNations Nikki Haley announced that Washington will withhold $255 million inassistance to Pakistan.
Media reports suggest the US decision risks the suspension of $2 billion inaid to Pakistan. In response, Pakistan suspended its defense andintelligence cooperation with the US.The latest US action has plunged US-Pakistani ties to its lowest ebb as themilitary alliance between the two sides, forged after the Sept 11, 2001,terrorist attacks on the US, has practically ceased to function.
After 9/11, Pakistan severed its ties with the Taliban and joined the US inthe fight against terrorism. Pakistani cooperation enabled the US to topplethe Taliban regime in Afghanistan, and also helped restore the militaryalliance between Washington and Islamabad.
However, the US’ military alliance with Pakistan has never been plainsailing. While the US suspected Pakistan’s commitment and sincerity infighting the Taliban, Islamabad was unhappy with the US drone attacks inPakistan on targets the US claimed were used by terrorists to launchcross-border attacks in Afghanistan.Pakistan deemed the attacks on its territory as a violation of itssovereignty.
The truth is that Washington has never treated Islamabad as an equal andrespected ally despite Islamabad hunting down hundreds of terrorists withthe limited resources at its disposal and paying a heavy price for aligningwith the US.
Its intelligence sharing has also helped the US troops to hunt down the topleaders of terrorist groups, including Osama bin Laden.
Even though Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama decided to end the Afghanistanwar in 2014 and withdraw most of the US combat troops from the countryclaiming the situation there had “improved”, the security outlook in bothAfghanistan and Pakistan has remained as bleak as ever. And with thereconciliation process in Afghanistan being full of twists and turns,Pakistan has continued to suffer frequent terrorist attacks.
Under such circumstances, the suspension of US security assistance toPakistan could be interpreted as a waning of Washington’s commitment tofight terrorism in the region. This might be in line with Trump’s “AmericaFirst” doctrine, but it could reinforce the widespread perception that theUS is not acting like a responsible power in the region.
The US has the responsibility to clean up the mess it has created inAfghanistan. It should also help Pakistan contain its homegrown terroristsand those that have infiltrated the country from Afghanistan.
For both missions, Washington needs strategic support from Islamabad asPakistan’s border with Afghanistan is a pivotal passageway and supply linefor US troops still stationed in Afghanistan.
Unless the US is prepared to wage a lone battle against the remainingterrorists in Afghanistan and find other ways to support its troops therewho rely on supplies through Pakistan, dissolving a military alliance withPakistan built over the years is not a good bargain for the Trumpadministration.
From a geopolitical perspective, given the icy US-Pakistani ties, Islamabadwill be forced to further deepen strategic relations with Beijing andMoscow, a scenario which Washington may not want to see.