Q: How successful were the bilateral relations between Pakistan and USA in the

time period 1947-99?

A: USA recognized Pakistan on 20th October 1947 and was amongst the first states to
establish relations with Pakistan.
Ever since the partition, Pakistan was looking to have cordial relations with either of the
super powers; USA or USSR, and was open to invitation. It was US that made Liaquat
Ali Khan snub the USSR offer and invite him to Washington that made Pakistan allies
with them. An agreement concluded for the purchase of the US military equipment,
scheduled for December 1950. Under the first technical cooperation agreement of 9
February 1951, Pakistan received a total of 500,000 dollars. It was decided that an
embassy would be established in Washington to further bring them close. With the
coming of power of the US Republican Eisenhower Administration in 1952, the relations
moved forward. Pakistan had already committed to become friendly with the West, thus
it was the first South Asian country that attracted the American interests.
The strategist of the containment policy of the communism, John Foster Dulles, paid a
visit to Pakistan in May 1953 and hinted at the signing of defence agreements. In 1953
when Pakistan was marred with the catastrophic drought, US donated 1 million tons of
wheat to overcome the food shortages. A year later a mutual defense agreement was
signed through which the US was allowed to provide military equipment and training to
Pakistan’s armed forces. Pakistan also signed The Middle East Defense Organization
(MEDO) with Turkey, a key ally of US in the region. It was further seen in the
subsequent SEATO & CENTO agreements that would prevent any communist spread in
South-East Asia and the Middle East and support the members against any aggression.
President Eisenhower’s visit in 1959 further strengthened the ties and was also an
indication that Ayub’s military regime was supported by the West. Such was the nature
of relationship that Pakistan even allowed the US to use her airbases for espionage,
mainly of USSR. This resulted in the notorious U2 incident that all but made Pakistan’s
position critical against USSR. Nonetheless, Pakistan was proving a reliable ally for the
US in the region.
The allegiance was not to go futile. The US contributed half billion dollars for Indus
Water Treaty. However, it didn’t last long as Pakistan was offended by the US help for
India in the Indo-Sino War. Ayub showed inclination towards USSR and this made the
US rethink her strategy towards Pakistan. This was the reason they put an embargo of
arms on the neighbors during the War of 1965. In spite of the strained relations,
Pakistan kept getting the aid in lieu of their signing of the SEATO. However, things
didn’t turn up well when it mattered the most. India’s rearmament due to Russian
support and the subsequent involvement in the civil war in East Pakistan needed a
concrete support from the US to maintain the balance of power. Although, they
promised to send a naval fleet to fight, the Enterprise didn’t serve the cause and Dhaka
fell.
When Bhutto took over he took a conciliatory approach towards the superpowers, more
so with the USSR. It was primarily due to his efforts that the Sino-US rapprochement
happened that fundamentally reconfigured the Cold War. The 1974 Indian nuclear tests
had threatened the security of Pakistan and a subsequent program was not something
the US would support. This was rather sternly conveyed when the Secretary of State
Henry Kissinger visited Lahore and warned Bhutto of dire consequences if the nukes
weren’t rolled back. The dismissal of Bhutto a few months later holds an important
position in this context. It was followed by the dictatorial regime of Zia, something US
were not supportive of.
The 1979 invasion of Afghanistan by USSR broke the ice again. Nuisance as it was for
the West, the US would not tolerate any sort of communism, that too in South Asia. Zia
was offered the support of a sizeable package of 3.2 billion dollars for the next six years
in return for them to act as a frontline state in the war. That said, the US kept
pressurizing both India and Pakistan to sign the CTBT and NPT to alleviate the
tensions, something both the neighbors denied. The period of 1980’s saw Pakistan’s
unconditional support for the Afghan War at the expense of their security. By 1988, the
Geneva Accord decided the fate of USSR and the US support for Pakistan diminished.
The return of democracy meant Benazir Bhutto attained power. Since the US and
Pakistani interests had diverted with the Soviets retreating from Afghanistan and the US
getting actively involved in the Middle East, the sanctions were revived and Pakistanis
yet again felt isolated and betrayed by their old friend and ally. The imposition of
Pressler Amendment was a deadly blow to the relations. It required that the U.S.
president’s certification that any country allowed to buy U.S. military hardware is not
developing nuclear weapons. In 1990, President George Bush declined to make such a
certification regarding Pakistan. Consequently, all U.S. arms deliveries to Pakistan were
suspended. The action ended a period of extremely close cooperation during the 1980s
when the United States funneled large quantities of arms to Pakistan for use by
the mujahideen (freedom fighters) in the Afghan war against the former Soviet Union. At
that time, Pakistan was allowed to order F-16 aircraft and also purchase conventional
military equipment for its own use. Pakistan had paid more than $600 million for the
planes and $368 million for the other arms when the 1990 freeze halted their delivery.
When Bill Clinton took over from Bush the relations were destined to improve. The
‘Thaw’ as it is referred to solved a five-year-old impasse over arms that Pakistan has
paid for but the U.S. has not yet delivered, the House-Senate conference committee
approved the Brown Amendment that sought a one-time waiver to the Pressler
Amendment. By 1996 Pakistan’s Afghan efforts were bringing some success and the
Taliban government was established in Afghanistan. The US government initially
welcomed the prospects of peace in the country but later opposed the Taliban regime
based on their extreme fundamentalist views and gross violations of human rights. The
US had a new interest in Afghanistan by mid-1998 after the terrorist attacks on US
Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania by an organization belonging to Osama bin Laden.
The US officials and high authorities wanted Pakistan to use their influence and power
on Taliban to surrender but they refused and new animosity started in the region. This
was followed by the nuclear tests by both India and Pakistan that resulted in sanctions
being imposed upon both. When in February 1999 the Lahore Declaration was signed,
the US welcomed the move, something that didn’t last long due to escalation of tension
over Kashmir and the limited scale war in Kargil. The hazard of a nuclear war was
looming and the situation demanded prompt action. Clinton called PM Vajpayee and
Nawaz Sharif to revert the forces through the Washington Declaration. Once again
Pakistan succumbed to US pressure.
Based on the discussion above, I believe that Pak-US relations have been volatile in
nature and uncertainty prevailed when Pakistan needed the support of her ally the most.
The loss of East Pakistan and sanctions at crucial times made Pakistan suffer more and
often overtook the cordiality of the relations. This however, cannot deny the support
Pakistan got that resulted in economic restructuring.