Q1). Explore the significance of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) for Pakistan.

[20]
Ans. Introduction:
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization, created in Shanghai, China, on June 15, 2001, is a
political, economic and security organization. Originally it included six countries namely China,
Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Pakistan and India became full
members in 2017 at a summit in Astana, Kazakhstan. Currently it has eight full members, four
observer states and six dialogue partners. The objectives of the SCO are to protect the political
interests of the member countries and promote security, economic and trade cooperation between
them.
Significance:
SCO has enabled Pakistan to strengthen regional connectivity which would reap numerous
benefits for the country.

Improve Indo-Pak relations:

Security:
Economy:
Anti-drug trafficking:
Overcome energy crisis:
Trade:

Conclusion:

Q2). Write a note on the post 9/11 foreign policy of Pakistan. What role do you foresee for
Pakistan in regional and global politics in the near future? [20]
Ans. Introduction:
The terrorist attacks on the twin towers in America on 9th of September, 2001 brought about
tremendous changes in international relations and altered the global order considerably. Many
countries of the world modified their foreign policies and Pakistan was no exception in this
regard. Being on the crossroads of territories where war on terror was ignited, Pakistan needed to
reform its foreign policy particularly in the context of US and Afghanistan.
Post 9/11 foreign policy:
The foreign policy of Pakistan since 9/11 has undergone major shifts on a number of principles
which were in practice for the last many decades. Post 9/11, the foreign policy of Pakistan has
undergone the following changes:
1) Support US in war on terror:
Due to its geographical location and its links to major regional players like India, Iran,
Afghanistan and China, the US needed Pakistan’s support. Pakistan’s role in the war on terror
was considered pivotal and it was recognized that without the active participation of Pakistan,
the US would not be able to achieve its objectives. In the eyes of Americans, the road to Taliban
went through Pakistan, which is why the US was determined to gain the support of Pakistan.
Pakistan’s decision to join the US led war on terror was based on four incentives; the country’s
security, its economic revival, safety of its nuclear assets and support for the Kashmir cause.
Pakistan was told that failure to cooperate in the global fight against terrorism would put the
country on a collision course with the US, thus Pakistan was forced to fall in line with US
foreign policy objective of eradicating terrorism. Though Pakistan didn’t send its troops to fight
in Afghanistan but it did provide its land routes, military bases and shared intelligence in order to
assist NATO forces in Afghanistan.
2) Abandoning the Taliban:
Pakistan had to take a U-turn in its foreign policy in the wake of US invasion of Afghanistan.
Pakistan turned its back on all militant organizations that it once supported and broke its
diplomatic ties along with freezing all their assets and eliminating all their hideouts in Pakistan.
Pakistan reversed its 22 years old pro-Afghanistan policy in general and during the period of
1996-2001 pro-Taliban foreign policy in particular. Pakistan had to decide whether it wanted to
be a partner or a target of the US and choose between saving herself or the Taliban.
3) India factor:
Traditional hostility with India saw a new dimension. 9/11 provided India a golden opportunity
to push forward its own agenda of counter-terrorism in Kashmir. Consequently, India tried to
combine the issues of war on terror and Kashmir so as to draw maximum benefit from the
changed international opinion in favour of fighting terrorism. India equated the freedom
movement in Kashmir with terrorism in order to pressurize Pakistan to abandon its Kashmir
policy and to legitimize its misdeeds and tyranny in the guise of fighting terrorism. India stressed
that like the US, India had been a victim of terrorism and hence it also has the right to use
military force in Kashmir to protect itself. India tried hard to get the international community to
declare Pakistan a terrorist state by launching propaganda against Pakistan for perpetrating cross-
border terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir. 9/11 acted as a catalyst in worsening the already critical
relations and every attempt to restore peace proved futile.
4) Kashmir issue:
Pakistan’s traditional policy on Kashmir was based on two principles. First, Pakistan wanted the
resolution of Kashmir issue based on the UN resolutions which urged India to accept that
Kashmir is a disputed territory and it should hold a plebiscite in Kashmir. Second, Pakistan
supported armed insurgent groups active in Kashmir in the hope that it would raise the cost for
the Indian side to the extent that it would abandon Kashmir in due course. After 9/11, the
distinction between freedom struggle and terrorism became vague, as a result Pakistan departed
from its traditional position on Kashmir and attempted to devise new methods of achieving
political goals. Pakistan abandoned military support to the rebel groups in Kashmir who had
been instrumental in waging Jihad against the Indian oppression and started focusing more on
political and moral support to the Kashmir cause to counter Indian propaganda of linking
Kashmir issue with terrorism. President Musharraf proscribed two militant groups active in
Kashmir, the Jaish-e-Muhammad and Lashkar-e-Taiba and agreed on a less aggressive insistence
on holding a plebiscite. In 2004, President Musharraf suggested a solution to the Kashmir issue
other than the implementation of the UN resolutions. He suggested the following four main
points:
a) The state of Jammu and Kashmir could be divided into seven zones, instead of treating it
as one whole political unit for the purpose of eliciting the views of Kashmiris.
b) These zones should be gradually demilitarized.
c) Their status should be changed because the status quo in Kashmir is unacceptable and the
Line of Control cannot be a solution to the lingering dispute.
d) The valley could be controlled jointly by India and Pakistan.
Musharraf’s proposals are based on realistic grounds because war is no longer an option as both
nations are nuclear powers and cannot afford to enter into a conflict with each other anymore.
National policies are not sacrosanct or revealed scriptures, which cannot be altered. As long as
the objective remains unaltered, the tactics of reaching that goal can vary in harmony with the
changing internal and external situation.

Role in regional and global politics:

Promoting regional connectivity and economic integration
Promoting regional stability and peace
Fight against terrorism
Calm tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia by inviting them to join CPEC
Pakistan’s role in Afghanistan:
Help US to seek a safe exit from Afghanistan and Pakistan’s role in Afghan peace process
India-Pakistan relations
Conclusion:
Q3). Write note on the Afghan War since 1979 and its impacts on Pakistan. How far the
emergence of “Non-state actors” and Non-Traditional security threats in Pakistan can be
attributed to the decades-long warfare in Afghanistan? [20]
Ans. Introduction:
Afghanistan has been in a state of war for nearly four decades now. The Afghan War started in
1979 and continues to this day. The Afghan War has been fought in three phases since 1979. In
each phase, the belligerents kept on changing in their outlooks and ideologies.
First Afghan War (1979-1989):
The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan on 24th December 1979, sending in 30,000 troops and
toppling the government of Hafizullah Amin. The Soviet Union installed Soviet loyalist Babrak
Kamal as the new president of Afghanistan. The Soviet occupation force grew to 100,000
soldiers and assumed complete military and political control of Kabul and large portions of the
country. Soviet forces tried to break the insurgency through bombings, executions and torture of
prisoners. The Soviets then attempted to eliminate the mujahideen’s civil support by
depopulating rural areas, destroying irrigation ditches and laying millions of land mines. The
Soviet expansion created a challenge of security for Pakistan and the country emerged as a front-
line state and the principal channel through which assistance was provided to the mujahideen.
The US, Saudi Arabia and Egypt provided weapons and money which were delivered to
mujahideen by Pakistan. Among the weapons supplied to the mujahideen, the surface-to-air
“Stinger” missile was the most lethal and considered many analysts as the turning point in the
war. In addition to this, an indeterminate number of Muslim volunteers travelled from all parts of
the world to join the opposition. Pakistan provided safe haven to the mujahideen and also trained
them in camps along the Pak-Afghan border. Soviet forces withdrew on 15th February 1989 and
transferred the burden of fighting the mujahideen to the Afghan armed forces which continued
until 1992 when the Soviet-backed government collapsed.
Second Afghan War (1992-1996):
After the fall of the communist Najibullah-regime in 1992, fighting and rivalry over Kabul
started among ethnic groups led by several war-lords. The forces the US and its allies had trained
and armed now fought each other in complex coalitions for control of Afghanistan. There were
five major participants involved in the civil war namely: Jamiat-e-Islami led by Ahmad Shah
Masood, Hizb-i-Wahdat supported by Iran, Ittihad-i-Islam supported by Saudi Arabia, Junbish-i-
Milli led by Abdul Rasheed Dostum and the Hezb-i-Islami led by Gulbaddin Hekmatyar which
was latter replaced by the Taliban. The Taliban were funded and supported by Pakistan to
establish a regime in Afghanistan which would be favourable to Pakistan. Ahmad Shah Masood
and Abdul Rasheed Dostum, two former archenemies, created the Northern Alliance against the
Taliban who were preparing offensives against areas controlled by Masood and Dostum. Masood
didn’t intend for the Northern Alliance to become the ruling government of Afghanistan. His
vision for the Northern Alliance was to help establish a coalition government, where various
ethnic groups would share power and live in peace through a democratic form of government.
However, the Northern Alliance failed to achieve its objectives and like previous coalition
governments such as the one created with the help of Pakistan under Peshawar Accords of 1992
failed. The Taliban, under the leadership of Mullah Omer, conquered Kabul on 27th September
1996 and formed the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
Third Afghan War (2001-Continues):
President Bush blamed Osama bin Laden for the attack on World Trade Center on 11th
September 2001 and on 7th October 2001, launched Operation Enduring Freedom with the
United Kingdom. The two were later joined by a coalition of over 40 countries, including all
NATO members. The war’s aims were to dismantle Al-Qaida and to deny it a safe base of
operations in Afghanistan by removing the Taliban from power. In December 2001, the United
Nations Security Council established the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), with a
mandate to help the Afghans maintain security in Kabul and surrounding areas. At the Bonn
Conference the same month, Hamid Karzai was selected to head the Afghan Interim
Administration and in 2004 elections, he was elected president of the country. Following their
defeat in the initial invasion, the Taliban were regrouped by its leader Mullah Omer and
launched an insurgency to expel US and ISAF forces. The Taliban, supported by Haqqani
Network and the Hezb-i-Islami militia of Gulbaddin Hekmatyar carried out suicide attacks and
planted improvised explosive devices (IEDs) on all major highways that took the lives of many
foreign troops. The Taliban also established sanctuaries on the Pak-Afghan border, from where
they launched cross-border raids. Small guerilla units regularly crossed the border to fire rockets
at coalition bases, ambush conveys and patrols and assault non-governmental organizations.
ISAF responded by increasing the number of troops for counterinsurgency operations and by
2011, there were roughly 150,000 troops operating under ISAF and US command. In May 2012,
NATO leaders endorsed an exit strategy for withdrawing their forces and on 28th December
2014, NATO formally ended ISAF operations in Afghanistan and transferred the responsibility
of security to the Afghan government. The US still remains in Afghanistan with more than
10,000 troops.
Impact of Afghan War on Pakistan:
1) The drugs trade:
In order to generate revenue for the sustenance of war, the Afghan warring factions resorted to
poppy cultivation and drug trafficking. Narcotics produced in Afghanistan were smuggled to
Pakistan which created powerful drug mafias in Pakistan and made heroin gradually accessible
throughout the whole country. The increase in narcotic production caused the number of addicts
in Pakistan to spike and by 1988, the drug trade was earning at least $4 billion a year, more
foreign exchange than all Pakistan’s legal exports combined. Today there are more than 3.5
million drug addicts in Pakistan.
2) Kalashnikov culture:
The Kalashnikov culture flourished when the US sent huge supplies of AK-47 Kalashnikov rifles
through Pakistan to arm the Afghan mujahideen. The Afghan War provided enormous
opportunities for business in illegal arms in KPK as a result of which different variety of
weapons were now within the reach of common people at cheap prices. Darra Adam Khel, a
tribal village in Pakistan’s federally administered areas, became one of the world’s largest
unofficial arms market. There are more than 3000 technicians and skilled labour in 2600 arms
shops and five gun factories which manufactures a wide variety of automatic rifles, pistols, hand
grenades, rocket launchers, anti-aircraft guns and anti-tank ammunition. Furthermore, there was
massive corruption in the supply and distribution of US weapons to the mujahideen. Huge
amounts of weapons were siphoned off along the way by local administrators, military officials
and Afghan mujahideen to parties outside the conflict. In 1987, Newsweek mentioned that high
Pakistani officials, both military and civilian, were skimming off 30% or more of covert US aid
to mujahideen and as much as 50% of the weaponry was stolen or sold. Mismanagement in the
influx of mujahideen weaponry for the purpose of gaining financial benefits resulted in
sophisticated weapons falling into the hands of militants, criminals, ethnic and sectarian groups
who challenged the writ of Pakistan government and carried out suicide bombings and other
terrorist attacks on civilians and military establishments.
3) Sectarianism:
Sectarianism is one of the gravest threats to Pakistan’s domestic security. It is the outcome of
Zia’s Islamization program and the US’s encouragement of religion to stop the flood of
communism. The US deliberately promoted religion as a weapon against the Soviet Union and
spent approximately $250 million for the establishment of religious institutions known as
‘madrassas’. Deoband Sunni madrassas began to receive weapons and funding from the US and
Saudi Arabia in order to provide support and training to Pakistani Sunni fighters in the context of
Afghan Jihad. The madrassa students were educated to put Deobandi doctrines into action
through obedience to the fatwas produced in the madrassas in a spirit of conservatism and
religious rigor. Zia promoted Islamization in the hope that the opposing ideologies of Islam and
Soviet Union would act as a resistance. Ultimately, the autonomy of madrassas and Zia
Islamization program injected the insidious poison of religious sectarianism, fanaticism and
bigotry into the country, pitting sect against sect and region against region.
4) Smuggling:
The Afghan War brought a boom in illegal cross-border trade. Shortages of wheat, sugar and rice
in the Pakistani markets is often blamed on the smuggling of these commodities to higher priced
markets in Afghanistan. There are more than 20 border crossing points on Pak-Afghan border
which are not under the control of customs department and it is through these blind spots that
items such as mobile phones, laptops, refrigerators, television sets, petroleum products, tea and
garments are smuggled from Afghanistan into Pakistan. Smuggling has hurt Pakistan’s economy
in the form of lost revenues that it would have earned in custom duties and other levies had those
goods entered Pakistan through proper channels. Moreover, smuggled goods have destroyed
local industry as they are available at cheaper prices.
 5) Afghan refugees crisis:
The huge influx of Afghan refugees in Pakistan has put pressure on its meager resources.
Pakistan is a country with an ailing economy. The increasing budget deficit, simmering inflation
and lack of foreign investment have retarded its economic growth. Many skilled and unskilled
Afghan refugees managed to secure employment in agriculture and construction industry of
Pakistan and happily agree to work with little pays which has given local indigenous population
a hard time to find jobs. Furthermore, the hike in price of daily commodities is another reason
that make refugees undesirable for local population. The greater the demand, as an economic
theory suggests, the higher the price. The health and sanitation infrastructure are pitiable in
Pakistan and the overwhelming quantity of refugees only serve to push an already staggering
infrastructure to the verge of breakdown. Many Afghan refugees are recruited by banned terrorist
organizations owing to their poor economic conditions. Most of the refugees have no
documentation and hardly any of them have ID or any record of their permanent location. This
gives them an edge because they are not afraid to be identified or recognized. Afghan refugees
brought with them millions of livestock such as sheep, goats, camels, cattle and donkeys which
had a detrimental effect on the environment because of grazing on the scarce pasture land and
fragile soil. Uncontrolled grazing ruined the grazing fields and damaged the ecology of green
areas. The influx of Afghan refugees was a cause of serious deforestation in Pakistan’s Chitral,
Dir and Hazara Division as the refugees sought firewood for cooking and heating. The reckless
cutting of trees resulted in land erosion and landslides which changed the landscape of these
areas.
Conclusion:
The Afghan War proved fatal for Pakistan and the emergence of Non-state actors and Non-
Traditional security threats can surely be attributed to the Afghan War. The Afghan War
destroyed the social fabric of society in Pakistan and the country still hasn’t recovered from the
aftershocks of its adverse impacts.

Q4). Discuss the changing trends in Pakistan-US relations since 2001. [20]
Ans. Introduction:
Pakistan-US relations after 2001 is an excellent example of an opportunistic partnership between
two unequal powers. The US, a great power with global responsibilities, took advantage of
Pakistan’s desperate need for military and economic assistance in order to have access to
Pakistani bases and vital facilities to win the war on terror. Pakistan seized the opportunity
offered by US to gain military and economic assistance and to strengthen its position against
India.
Changing trends in Pak-US relations since 2001:
Prior to 9/11, Pakistan was the main supporter of Taliban in Afghanistan but after the September
11 attacks in 2001 in the US, Pakistan reversed course and became a key ally in the war on terror
with the US. Initially, Pakistan tried to strike a negotiation deal with Taliban and Al-Qaida
members to handover Osama bin Laden. However, when negotiations failed, Pakistan provided
US a number of military airports and bases for launching attacks on Afghanistan, along with
other logistic support. Since 2001, Pakistan has arrested over five hundred Al-Qaida members
and handed them over to US. In return for their support, US officials introduced a bill to lift all
sanctions previously imposed on Pakistan under Pressler and Glen amendments.
In 2003, US officially forgave $1 billion worth of loan it had granted to Pakistan in a goodwill
gesture and appreciation for Pakistan’s cooperation. US Ambassador Nancy Powell said in a
statement, “The forgiveness of $1 billion in bilateral debt is just one piece of a multifaceted,
multi-billion dollar assistance package.” In 2004, President Bush designated Pakistan as a major
non-NATO ally, making it eligible to purchase advanced American military technology.
The US immediately responded to Pakistan’s call for assistance following the tragic and
devastating earthquake of October 8, 2005. US pledged a total of $510 million in earthquake
relief and reconstruction efforts to assist the people of Pakistan. US also encouraged the
international community to respond generously to Pakistan as a result of which, at the November
19 Donors Conference in Pakistan, 75 countries and international organizations pledged $6.2
billion for relief and reconstruction.
The US and Pakistan have experienced several military confrontations on the Durand Line. In
June 2008, ten Pakistani paramilitary troops from the Frontier Corps and a Pakistan army major
were killed by a US air strike at Gora Prai in Mohmand Agency. In September 2010, US
helicopters entered Pakistani airspace in Kurram Agency after which Pakistani Frontier Corps
troops fired warning shots into the air but the helicopters responded by firing two missiles that
destroyed the post and killed three soldiers. Pakistan responded by closing NATO supply route
for eleven days. In November 2011, the Salala incident took place, wherein twenty eight
Pakistani soldiers, including two officers were killed in an attack on two Pakistani border posts
in Mohmand Agency. Pakistan responded by closing NATO supply route for an indefinite time
and also ordered the US to vacate the Shamsi Airfield in Balochistan.
In January 2011, Raymond Davis, a CIA contractor working at the US Consulate in Lahore,
killed two men in self-defense after they tried to rob him at gunpoint. The action sparked protests
in Pakistan and threatened relations between US and Pakistan. Pakistan accused Davis of murder
and prosecuted him despite adamant insistence from US that diplomatic immunity shielded him
from prosecution. Raymond Davis was freed after US provided financial compensation to the
victims’ families.
The case of Dr. Shakeel Afridi is important in Pak-US relations. Shakeel Afridi was a Pakistani
physician who helped the CIA run a fake hepatitis vaccine program in Abbottabad, to confirm
Osama bin Laden’s presence in the city by obtaining DNA samples. Shakeel Afridi was arrested
at the Torkham border while trying to flee the country. Pakistan refused US’s offer to exchange
Shakeel Afridi for Pakistani scientist Dr. Afia Siddiqui.
On 1st May 2011, US Navy Seals apparently landed on Pakistani soil and killed Osama bin
Laden in Abbottabad in operation Neptune Spear. US had long suspected Osama bin Laden of
hiding in Pakistan and the operation confirmed what they suspected over a long time. It also
struck a serious blow to Pakistan’s credibility as it had claimed that terrorists weren’t finding
refuge in the country. The operation was carried out without the knowledge of Pakistani
authorities who received heavy criticism for being unable to detect and intercept foreign military
raid deep inside Pakistani territory as well as for being oblivious to the presence of the world’s
most wanted person.
After joining the war on terror, Pakistan became a leading recipient of US aid. Between 2002 and
2013, Pakistan received $25 billion in economic and military aid. Pakistan received eighteen new
F-16 aircrafts, eight P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircrafts, six C-130 transport aircrafts, 20 Cobra
helicopters, six thousand TOW anti-tank missiles, five hundred AMRAM air-to-air missiles and
a Perry-class missile frigate. US during the Obama administration, linked success in Afghanistan
with peace in Pakistan and for that purpose the US provided funds with the objective of
strengthening democratic culture in Pakistan and tried to improve the agriculture as well as
education system in Pakistan in order to help Pakistan become a stable, secure and prosperous
nation.
Pakistan and the US are allies but their relationship has been plagued by mistrust. US officials
have time and again pointed fingers at Pakistan for actively supporting Afghan insurgents with
money, supplies and guidance. US believes that Pakistan is playing a double game; it secretly
supports Afghan insurgents but publically proclaims that it is fighting terrorism. US officials are
convinced that sanctuaries in Pakistan have allowed Afghan militants to sustain their insurgency
and elements within the ISI continue to support them. In 2011, Mike Mullen, US Joint Chiefs of
Staff, argued that Pakistan had close ties with Haqqani network and its support for such groups
made it indirectly responsible for attacks against US troops in Afghanistan. He also said that
Pakistan’s ISI provide militants with useful information so that they could escape in advance of
American attacks against them. The famous Kerry-Lugar Bill of 2009, which invited much
controversy and criticism, clearly showed US’s distrust in Pakistan’s military command. It
agreed to triple US non-military aid to Pakistan from $500 million to $1.5 billion annually for
the next five years if the Pakistani military accepted certain conditions such as cutting ties with
Taliban and preventing them from using Pakistani territory as a base from which to launch
attacks in Afghanistan.
Since 2004, the US has attacked thousands of Al-Qaida and Taliban targets in the Federally
Administered Tribal Areas along the Pak-Afghan border using unmanned aerial vehicles known
as drones. Pakistan has condemned drone attacks and stated that the attacks are a violation of
Pakistan’s sovereignty. In December 2013, the National Assembly of Pakistan unanimously
approved a resolution against US drone strikes in Pakistan, calling them a violation of the
Charter of the UN, international laws and humanitarian norms. According to US officials,
Pakistan’s inability to control and keep track of terrorist activities inside its borders, prompted
the US to conduct drone strikes. US drone strikes have also undermined the efforts made by
Pakistan to engage Taliban militants in peace talks by killing several Taliban leaders such as
Baitullah Mehsud, Hakimullah Mehsud and Wali-ur-Rehamn.
Pakistan’s nuclear program is a barrier in Pak-US relations. US is concerned about the safety of
Pakistan’s nuclear weapons, believing that they are vulnerable to internal threats and may fall
into the hands of terrorists. On the other hand, people of Pakistan fear that the US is trying to
seize their nuclear weapons and the US’s war on terror is an alibi for denuclearizing Pakistan.
Relations between Pakistan and US soured when President Musharraf, reportedly under US
pressure, put Abdul Qadeer Khan under house arrest after it was revealed that he provided
nuclear weapons technology to Iran, Libya and North Korea.
Relations between Pakistan and the US greatly improved when Pakistan launched major
operations such as Operation Rah-e-Rast and Operation Rah-e-Nijat in 2009 along with
Operation Zarb-e-Azab in 2013 in Swat, North Waziristan, South Waziristan and other volatile
areas along the Pak-Afghan border to destroy Taliban hideouts and drive them away. Pakistan
secured the Pak-Afghan border by building a fence all along the border and by making new
check posts. US have praised Pakistan for its efforts against militants and acknowledged the
sacrifices made by Pakistan in the war on terror.
Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline has been made controversial by the US. The pipeline is seen as an
energy lifeline that will help in alleviating Pakistan’s chronic energy crisis. US asked Pakistan to
abandon the pipeline project and warned that if the pipeline is built, it will lead to US sanctions
against Pakistan. Imposing sanctions on Pakistan is part of US’s policy to contain Iran’s nuclear
program. However, Pakistan continued to work on the project despite US concerns as it
considers the project vital to Pakistan’s national interest. Pakistan argued that the imposition of
sanctions will adversely affect Pakistan’s economic growth and will intensify anti-US sentiments
in Pakistan.
The growing partnership between Pakistan and China is viewed by the US with skeptical eyes.
US fears the rapid economic, political and military growth of China and feels insecure that China
may become its competitor in world leadership. US wants to contain China and is cynical of the
rising partnership between Pakistan and China and wants to dissuade both the states from this
cordiality. In retaliation, US is supporting India militarily and technologically which poses a
serious threat to Pakistan’s security. The immense US assistance to India will compel Pakistan to
seek similar kind of deals with other countries such as China, which may trigger an arms-race
between the two rivals and rejuvenate instability in the region.
Pakistan-US relations since 2001 have mostly been unpleasant. Pakistan didn’t face the
existential threat of Taliban militancy inside its borders before siding with US in 2001 but after
joining the US in war on terror, 60,000 Pakistanis including 12,000 troops and policemen have
died and the economy has suffered a loss of $70 billion.
Conclusion:
Pak-US relations have seen many ups and downs but generally, their relation has not been
smooth and friendly. Pakistan blames the US for interfering in its internal matters and holds it
responsible for the political instability in the region while the US blames Pakistan for its failure
in the war against terrorism.