Col (r) Ikram Ullah Khan
The chequered history of Pak-US bonhomie goes back to 1947 when the US recognized Pakistan on 15 August 1947, a day after it came into being. During the embryonic stage of Pakistan\’s existence, its first PM Liaqat Ali Khan opted to visit the USA, reportedly spurning the invitation extended by the erstwhile USSR, though a formal invitation from the Soviet authorities is disputed, yet there is a general perception that Liaquat Ali Khan preferred the US over the USSR, and perception is said to be stronger than reality; thus formally laying the foundations of Pak-US relations.
Amidst an intense Cold War going on with full throttle between the two superpowers of that time, both of whom were willy-nilly interested in fostering friendly relations with the newly-born state of Pakistan given its strategic location/importance. The US very shrewdly considered maintaining some kind of relationship with Pakistan even at a low profile as it thought it an evil necessity to do so in order to stem USSR from advancing towards warm waters in the future, an ambition which the US thought the USSR had been harbouring for long in order to knock its adversary down and control the world.
The relations between the Pakistan and the USA can rightly be termed as a “roller coaster” characterized by ups and downs amidst lukewarm trust and deep suspicion. This relationship attained new heights during 80s (1980-1989) after the USSR occupied Afghanistan in 1979 and continued occupying it till 1989, thus putting the US at a loss as to what to do to counter the nerve-shattering Soviet move with its likely far-reaching repercussions. The US very ingeniously devised a strategy to raise a formidable fighting force in the shape of “Mujahidden” with the help of Pakistan that fiercely fought back the Soviet forces. After the USSR was defeated in 1989 and its threat of advance was averted, the US-Pak relations was on the wane and lost warmth and experienced a downturn.
However, a wishy-washy relationship continued until 2001 when the US occupied Afghanistan dethroning Taliban and the US once again warmly embraced Pakistan as it needed Pakistan’s strategic support to fight the Taliban and remain in occupation of Afghanistan. This relationship saw its peak during the two-decades long US-Afghan war which culminated in the US withdrawal from Afghanistan with Taliban taking over Kabul in August 2021. Since then, the US key policy makers once again have been revisiting the US’ relations with Pakistan. Additionally, the strategic convergence of the US and India has brought great pressure on Pakistan, leaving Pakistan with no option but to further cement its old friendly relationship with China.
During the Cold War (1947-1991), Pakistan allied itself with the Western Bloc led by the US against the Eastern Bloc led by the Soviet Union. The relationship with the US received further impetus during General Ayub Khan’s rule when he established a strong military alliance with the US. After ZA Bhutto came to power, the relations with the US took a stunning twist and Bhutto, ditching the US, established relations with the Soviet Union. However, during Gen Ziaul Haq’s long rule, the swing of the pendulum once again got tilted towards the US ushering in a new era of friendly relationship. It was during this period that the US once again needed Pakistan to counter Soviet occupation forces in Afghanistan by raising “Mujahideen force” as mentioned earlier. During General Musharraf’s regime, Pak-US relations further improved as the US wanted Pakistan’s support on “War against Terror”, a term coined by the US and since then it has become a buzz word.
The US has remained quite unpredictable in its relations with Pakistan. This troubled and mercurial relationship continues to be plagued by crisis after crisis marked by serious trust deficit between the two countries. Moreover, Pakistan seems to have lost its strategic significance in the eyes of the US following the NATO and US withdrawal from Afghanistan.
In this connection, it may be noted that Pakistan once provided NATO with a supply route to Afghanistan to support allied forces to continue fighting against Taliban. However, with the end of the long-drawn war spanning over two decades and the withdrawal of the US-led allied forces from Afghanistan, Pakistan’s significance has drastically diminished and the US no longer needs Pakistan, resulting in the termination of the longstanding bonhomie.
The history of Pak-US ties has a history of twists and turns and arm-twisting. The US imposed sanctions on Pakistan on various occasions to brow beat Pakistan into complying with its strategic interests. It’s an old strategy used by the US when it feels it doesn\’t need Pakistan any more or Pakistan is drifting away from the US policies. The latest sanctions imposed by the Trump administration on Pakistan is just a continuation of the time-tested US policy, and Pakistan for obvious reasons has no choice but to bear with it and it will continue to bear the brunt of the US pressure till it achieves economic stability and gets rid of the IMF which is virtually controlled by the US.