Earlier this month, the much-awaited, all-important intra-Afghan dialoguelink began in Doha, Qatar. Thisis the first time that the Taliban and representatives from the Afghangovernment are directly engaged in negotiating the future of their country.In the United States-Taliban agreementlink,signed in February 2020, the intra-Afghan dialogue was dubbed critical tocompleting the Afghan reconciliation process and bringing lasting peace andprosperity in the war-torn country. The overall peace process inAfghanistan rested on two pillars: the U.S-Taliban agreement and theintra-Afghan dialogue. With all three parties — Washington, Taliban, andKabul — engaging with each other, the prospect of a peaceful settlement ofthe Afghan imbroglio has increased.
Developments in the Afghan peace process have always had a direct bearingon the trajectory of Washington’s ties with Islamabad. Relations betweenthe two countries have improved link, owingto Pakistan’s positive rolelinkinhelping the United States and the Afghan Taliban strike a deal. Thecommencement of the intra-Afghan dialogue, coupled with United States’acknowledgementlinkofPakistan’s go-between efforts, is good news for Pakistan-United Statesrelations, The Diplomat has reported.
There are two concomitant factors that explain why the all-Afghan parleysin Doha are propitious for Washington-Islamabad ties.
The first factor is the robust, continuous engagement between Pakistan andthe United States, ever since the signing of the Doha deal. Direct contactsbetween interlocutors from both sides, months ahead of the intra-Afghandialogue, focused on discussing ways link tonavigate speed bumps in the peace process arising out of an impasseover prisoners’releaselinkand continued violencelink.Rather than blame Pakistan for the Taliban’s recalcitrance on both issues,the United States increased deliberations with Islamabad. Moreover, afterfailinglinktocajole Afghan politicians to establish a unified government — a step deemedessential in advancing the peace process — the United States pulled theplug on the Afghan government by threatening to slash $2 billion in Afghanaid. That Washington did not label Pakistan as the party erectingroadblocks in the peace process is a healthy sign for thison-again-off-again relationship.
Additionally, during the interregnum, the United States appreciatedlinktheendeavors of Prime Minister Imran Khan and Chief of Army Staff GeneralQamar Javed Bajwa toward peace in Afghanistan. All this shows that thetrust deficit that had continually marred Pakistan-United States relationsand consequently, peace in Afghanistan, has attenuated significantly. Thelevel of cooperation and liaison between the two sides can be gauged by thefact that, a day ahead of the intra-Afghan talks, the commander of U.S.Central Command and Pakistan’s chief of army staff delved into the Afghanpeace process. This was followed by a meeting between U.S. SpecialRepresentative for Afghan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad and Pakistaniofficials, during which, while reiterating his laudatory remarks aboutPakistan, Khalilzad saidlink:“The United States will never forget the solidarity of our many allies andpartners who have stood with us in the long struggle to end this war.”
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Given that increasing levels of synergy between the two countries havehelped surmount one of the biggest impediments to peace in Afghanistan,both Pakistan and the United States could commit themselves to carrying onwith this approach, much to the benefit of their relations and Afghan peace.
The second factor is how Pakistan has increased its credibility as astabilizer in the Afghan peace process — a likely source of the upswing inthis topsy-turvy relationship. Pakistan’s appearance as a balanced actor,one that is not espousing favorites in Afghanistan, is one of the elementsthat could create more harmonious ties with the United States. Pakistanmade concerted efforts to dispel the impression that it takes sides inAfghanistan. After the Doha deal, Pakistan carefully steered clear ofwading into the infighting in Afghanistan. Despite Afghan President AshrafGhani’s diatribeslinkagainstit, Pakistan did not root for his opponent, Abdullah Abdullah, during thepolitical bickering in Kabul and quickly recognized the former as the newpresident of Afghanistan with a view toward workinglink with him.Subsequently, Pakistan has maintained high-level contacts with thegovernment in Kabul, as evidenced by a telephone conversationlink between Ghani and Khan,as well as Bajwa’s visitlink toAfghanistan.
Pakistan also took great strides in giving a softer touch to a troubledrelation by opening link itsborder to facilitate Afghan traders — even during the height of thepandemic — and establishing small marketslinkalongthe border with Afghanistan. Islamabad has also pushed both leadingfactions in the Afghan negotiations — the Talibanlinkandthe Afghan governmentlink— toward direct negotiations. That this two-track engagement has deliveredthe goods is instructive for the United States. For Washington, Islamabadhas not scuttled the peace process, increasing the chances of a smoothwithdrawal of U.S. troops. At a time when the U.S. presidential election isless than two months away and President Donald Trump has announced adrawdownlinkofforces in Afghanistan, Washington would not be enamored with the idea ofupsetting the mode of engagement with Islamabad.
