AS the protracted Russia-Ukraine war has raised deep concerns about regional and global energy and food security, Pakistan and the United States have discussed ways and means to minimize the impact of the unending conflict on Pakistan’s food security.
The issue came up for discussion during latest telephonic conversation between Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, which focused on enhanced engagement between the two countries in the backdrop of ill-conceived allegations levelled by the previous Government vis-à-vis the so-called lettergate.
It was encouraging to note that the two sides reiterated the mutual commitment to deepen Pak-US ties marking the 75th anniversary of their relationship.
This is the third direct/indirect contact between the two leaders since assumption of power by the coalition government in Pakistan which speaks volumes about the desire of the two countries to bring the otherwise bumpy relationship back on track.
There are visible signs of improvement in ties but much needs to be done through engagement at different levels that could translate into meaningful and concrete outcomes.
Analysts are describing a flurry of exchanges from both sides with the recent visits of the US special envoy on trade and another senior official dealing with narcotics and security as the beginning of a new phase of bilateral relations.
It is also reassuring that during his latest contact, Bilawal raised some issues of concern to Pakistan including ease in issuance of visas for Pakistani nationals and mutual cooperation in energy, health, security and economic development areas that have assumed critical importance for Pakistan in the given economic scenario.
There was a positive response from the other side as Blinken reaffirmed joint goals for enhancing US-Pakistan bilateral partnership on economic stability, climate and health.
The Afghan situation and how it should be addressed is among the points of divergence but the two leaders agreed to remain engaged with the interim Afghan Taliban government to deal with the humanitarian crisis in the neighbouring country.
It is hoped that continued engagement and talks on different aspects of the situation would help bridge differences, especially after the supreme leader of the Afghan Taliban, Sheikh Hibatullah Akhundzada categorically declared that his government desires to have “good relations” with the United States and reiterated that Afghanistan will not allow anyone to “use its territory against its neighbours”.
His public statement is meaningful as he declared that within the framework of mutual interaction and commitment, Afghanistan wants good diplomatic, economic and political relations with the world, including the United States and Afghanistan considers this in the interest of all sides.
We hope that frequent and closer exchanges between the two countries would not only help clear misgivings on the issue of Afghanistan but also deepen prospects for greater cooperation in economic and security fields.
We have always advocated in these columns that the U.S. has historically been one of Pakistan’s most important development partners and remains a major source of foreign direct investment as well as one of Pakistan’s biggest export markets.
The United States has been a major investor in Pakistan’s infrastructure, energy and education sectors – the last exemplified by the largest Fulbright Programme run by the United States anywhere in the world.
It was because of the critical role that the United States plays in the overall economic development of Pakistan that we vehemently opposed attempts to cause any dent to the relationship due to short-sighted policies and, therefore, we appreciate the efforts being made by the coalition government, especially Foreign Minister Bilawal and Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar, who made sagacious moves to repair the damaged ties.
One can differ with the mechanism used by the United States to utilize economic and military allocations for Pakistan but it is a fact that the US assistance helped Pakistan modernize its defence forces and accelerate the pace of socio-economic development.
While the United States offered generous military and security assistance, Pakistan too reciprocated by extending sincere cooperation in advancing shared goals of promoting regional and global peace and security.
However, Washington has to appreciate that in order to base the bilateral relationship on strong foundations, it has to address concerns of people of Pakistan over lopsided US policy towards nuclear issues in South Asia, proper and fuller appreciation of Pakistan’s decisive role and unprecedented sacrifices in counter-terrorism campaign and a role beyond verbal rhetoric about fair and just resolution of the Kashmir dispute in line with commitments expressed by the world community in the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.
