Pakistan has proven to be an important counterterrorism ally to the United States over the years in efforts to break up networks that pose a threat to both international and regional security. Islamabad had also delivered hundreds of Taliban and Al-Qaeda suspects to US authorities early in the post-9/11 period and had shown a commitment to cooperation. The bilateral relationship has evolved to an effective intelligence-sharing and collaborative operation framework over the years, and has borne some concrete fruit. The arrest and trial of key terrorists, the establishment of new fusion centres, and recurring conversations at the top levels demonstrate that cooperation is strategically useful to both nations.
In its fundamental form, US-Pakistan collaboration is necessitated by shared threats.
Pakistan has developed strong counterterrorism institutions over time to allow coordination in the country and with other countries. The National Intelligence Fusion and Threat Assessment Centre (NIFTAC) is a federal centre that in 2025 was opened in Islamabad, connecting more than 50 civilian and military agencies on a network of integrated intelligence and threat management. The centralised database and analytic architecture that NIFTAC possesses mitigates the juxtaposition of intelligence gathering, analysis, and operational responses across the nation. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif termed the centre as a national platform of joint threat assessment and response, which is essential in eradicating terrorism and supporting conditions of terrorism. These institutional inventions are supported by a new US-Pakistan cooperative discourse on counterterrorism. To illustrate, mutual meetings in 2024-2025 reaffirmed collaboration on such common threats as Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and ISIS-Khorasan (ISIS-K). Concisely, new counterterror structures in Pakistan and strategic dialogues that have been reinstated offer a concrete platform in which the two can plan and coordinate.
The most practical instances of this relationship have been the cooperative intelligence activity. One more prominent instance is the 2025 arrest of Mohammad Sharifullah (alias: Jafar), an ISIS-K conspirator who was involved in the Kabul Abbey Gate bombing by terrorists in August 2021. US intelligence located Sharifullah and gave Pakistan its military the intelligence, which led to a joint raid by the Pakistani military and CIA in southwest Balochistan. According to both American and Pakistani officials, Sharifullah was apprehended following a new intelligence cooperation, as one US official said, it occurred after an additional intelligence sharing and pressure that were put on regional partners. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif thanked Trump for “acknowledging and appreciating” the country’s role in counter-terrorism efforts in Afghanistan. John Ratcliffe, the CIA director, later confirmed that the head of the Pakistani intelligence service was personally briefed by him, and the capture of Sharifullah immediately took the top place in the priorities of countering terrorism in Islamabad; their intelligence soon imprisoned Jafar within days, Ratcliffe added. This was followed by the extradition of Sharifullah to the US on charges of terrorism. This is just one among several examples where the smooth US and Pakistan intelligence integration yielded such a tangible operation against internationalised terror.
US Army General Michael Kurilla, the head of the US Central Command, has been vocal in crediting Pakistan as a great partner in the global war on terrorism. He emphasised Pakistani forces have actively hunted ISIS-K members, saying that Islamabad “has gone after ISIS Khorasan, killing dozens of them” and detaining at least five high-value ISIS-K targets. Gen Kurilla also mentioned that Pakistan had detained Jafar and was ready to hand him over to the American authorities. In recognition, Pakistan awarded General Kurilla with the Nishan-e-Imtiaz (Military), one of the highest military decorations of Pakistan. According to the Pakistani army, this award was a form of recognition of the Pakistani army Chief of Staff in fostering mutual understanding, improving the collaboration in the field of defence and increasing counter terrorism cooperation between the Pakistani and the American armed forces. It also appreciated his contributions to the security in the region and the efforts in enhancing strategic relations. Such top-level interactions, whether in testimony before Congress or at awards presentations, highlight the level of military-to-military trust and coordination. As Washington enhances relationships with all partners in South Asia, US commanders have lamented that the Pakistan relationship is vital in ensuring stability.
In its fundamental form, US-Pakistan collaboration is necessitated by shared threats. The two states are victims of terrorism, and they have adhered to fighting terror groups such as the TTP, al-Qaeda, and the ISIS-K. As an example, the Taliban-affiliated TTP and ISIS-K have been explicitly defined as the priority targets of mutual efforts by officials of the US and Pakistan. Pakistan also has deployed its own troops to pursue TTP militants to the north of the country and has collaborated with the US in de-listing (and designating) assorted jihadi outfits. Similarly, the presence of ISIS-K in the region is a shared issue: its members killed American soldiers and local Afghan civilians, and each side is pursuing them across the border. By going after terrorists who ply their trade across borders, whether it is the Afghan safe havens or Pakistani hideouts, the two countries strengthen regional and international security. According to one US State Department spokesperson, ‘with the arresting of Sharifullah, it was observed that bringing these terrorists to justice also demonstrated that US-Pakistan counterterrorist collaboration is critical. This unity in the fight against terrorism is fruitful in the wider region in times when violence is persistent.
The US-Pakistan partnership on counter-terrorism has demonstrated its strategic success in terms of real results. The two countries have enhanced their safety through new fusion centres, the sharing of intelligence in real time, joint raids and by entrenching military relations. The current achievements, including successful arrests of terrorists and institutional reforms, are based on this partnership. Since threats are continuously changing, it will be essential to preserve and tighten this collaborative framework. History also indicates that Pakistan and the United States, when they collaborate, are in a position to provide a very high level of improved security to themselves, as well as to the whole region. Further negotiations and building of trust will go a long way in ensuring these well-acquired gains continue to be sustained.
The writer is a freelance columnist.