Daily Times

It is said that money talks. Though when it comes to Pakistan, a barely audible whisper is the name of the game. At least this seemed to be the message that the new US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo intended to send.

No one here in this country, neither the electorate nor the state, needs to be reminded of how the bilateral relationship has soured beyond everyone’s wildest nightmare. Nevertheless, during a congressional hearing to discuss foreign military assistance budgets — in which it was noted that Washington is not as flush as it once was, meaning that Pakistan would feel even more of a pinch — Pompeo chose to bring up two American contentions. Neither of which was linked to either the tightening or loosening of purse-strings.

First came the complaint of how US diplomats are “treated badly” here in this country. All of which is rather laughable. Not least because it has not been Pakistani diplomats that have been involved in recent car accidents that have left at least one dead and three injured. And this is just for this year alone. This is to say nothing of Raymond Davis. Of course, he was not a diplomat. Though that did not stop Obama telling stories about his immunity status after the contractor shot dead three local men. Next up, Pompeo raised the question of the continued detention of Dr Shakil Afridi; who was infamously involved in a fake CIA polio campaign to track down Bin Laden. Even though he was ultimately not tried for this.

Be that as it may, this suggests that the top American diplomat needs to perhaps master his art. Someone somewhere should have had a quiet word with him; carefully advising how it might have been better to wait for the incoming government to bring up bilateral sticking points. After all, Washington will be stuck with this set-up for the next five years. In fact, with elections taking place in July, this was the time to reset the Pak-US relationship. Not least because conventional wisdom dictates that Pakistan, like it or not, holds the key to securing the Afghan quagmire.

Thus it falls to Islamabad once more to take the lead in wiping the American slate clean. Whether or not it will play ball remains to be seen. That will likely depend on just who the people chose as their elected representatives. Yet whatever the outcome, the leadership will have to demonstrate pragmatism. For it needs as many regional allies as possible. Or put another way, it does not need more adversaries.  *

Published in Daily Times, May 27^th 2018.