Zelensky’s recent encounter with Trump is a stark reminder that the US has no permanent allies – only shifting interests.
Washington’s willingness to impose tariffs on Canada cut off military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine and halted cooperation with Europe against Russian cyber operations reinforce a long-standing truth: the US is an unreliable ally with a tumultuous foreign policy. Both Pakistan and India have, at different points in history, felt the sting of abandonment by Washington. However, the two have engaged with this bitter truth very differently; consequently, they have seen different outcomes. While US-India relations have strengthened due to India’s economic rise and growing geopolitical importance, Pakistan has found itself marginalized, primarily due to internal instability, economic struggles, and security concerns. The lesson for Pakistan is clear: the US is an opportunistic ally, and the only way to turn this relationship into a mutually beneficial one is through economic partnerships and strategic diplomacy.
Pakistan does not need to look elsewhere for examples – its history with America says enough. In 1960, the U-2 incident exposed how Washington treated Pakistan as a mere pawn in its Cold War chess game – launching a covert spy plane from a Pakistani military base into Soviet airspace. When the mission (spectacularly) failed, Pakistan bore the brunt of diplomatic backlash (read: Soviet wrath) while the US swiftly distanced itself from the fallout.
The challenge is to carefully navigate between its “all-weather friendship” with Beijing and strategic cooperation with the US.
Fast forward, to the 1980s, despite initially disapproving of General Zia-ul-Haq’s military dictatorship, the US suddenly poured economic and military aid into Pakistan when it needed a front-line ally against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Once the war ended, however, Pakistan was sanctioned under the Pressler Amendment, leaving it to deal with the chaos and militancy that emerged from the conflict, all by itself.
Yet again, in its War on Terror, Pakistan was forced into a military campaign that led to thousands of civilian and military casualties, economic losses and a rise in domestic terrorism. Despite Pakistan’s sacrifices, the US publicly criticized and scapegoated it, particularly after the Osama bin Laden raid in 2011. In 2021, the US withdrawal from Afghanistan further reduced Pakistan’s strategic relevance to the US.
On the other hand, our rival neighbours share a similar history but have a different present. India’s reliance on the US in its early years had also proven to be a gamble rather than a guarantee. During India’s war with China in 1962, despite Nehru’s outreach, US assistance was minimal and temporary, and Washington quickly shifted its support to Pakistan, ignoring India’s long-term security concerns. In 1971, India intervened in Bangladesh Liberation War, the US actively sided with Pakistan, sending the USS Enterprise to the Bay of Bengal as an intimidation tactic. Even in critical defence partnerships, the US has historically been reluctant to share advanced military technology.
So how did the two nations come to have such different relationships with the American empire today? The US- Indian relationship trajectory, over the past two decades, is headed in a new direction with India’s economic rise. India is one of the world’s fastest-growing economies and a global player in technology, manufacturing, and defence which has remarkably improved its relations with America.
Precisely, as per The Economist, “America is betting on India’s inexorable rise.” This improved relationship can be traced back to 2005 when the US-India Civil Nuclear Agreement marked a major diplomatic shift and allowed India access to civilian nuclear technology despite its non-signatory status in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Meanwhile, Pakistan was denied a similar deal. More recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Washington further contributed to advancing the US-India relationship, with America’s offer to sell F-35s, its most advanced military aircraft. With China emerging as the US’s primary geopolitical rival, Washington sees India as a counterbalance to Chinese influence in Asia.
In contrast, Pakistan as a country has been plagued with economic struggles, political instability, and domestic terrorism. Coupled with its reliance on China, it has made it less attractive as a strategic partner for the US, which prefers alliances with economically and militarily strong nations (fair enough). This explains its growing closeness with India and the maintenance of a transactional relationship with Pakistan only.
Now in 2025, Pakistan must acknowledge that the US will remain an opportunistic ally-one that engages only when it benefits economically or strategically and will never be a true friend. This does not mean Pakistan should abandon ties with the US; instead, it must transform the relationship into one that is mutually beneficial rather than exploitative. This only seems possible if Pakistan capitalizes on the US as its largest export market and focuses on potential economic partnerships, trade deals, and technological collaborations instead of serving as a means for the US to achieve its military objectives.
The challenge is also to carefully navigate between its “all-weather friendship” with Beijing and strategic cooperation with the US. India’s improved relations with the US were not built on blind trust, but rather on strategic positioning and economic leverage. Pakistan must adopt a similar approach-instead of categorising the US as a friend or foe, it should engage with Washington on a calculated, transactional basis.
The writer is a law student at Lahore University of Management Sciences.