US-Pakistan Relations Are Strong, Says Ambassador Asad Majeed Khan at Stimson Center in Washington, DC
By Elaine Pasquini
Washington, DC: While Pakistan and the United States have been friends for decades, the relationship has experienced some rocky times. Even Dr Asad Majeed Khan, Pakistan’s ambassador to the US, admitted: “There never is a dull moment” in the friendship of the two nations.
Speaking at the Stimson Center on September 16, the ambassador noted that, despite their differences, the two countries “always had a lot in common and a lot to pursue together that has kept this relationship going.”
Currently, as it has been for a long time, the US is the largest export destination for Pakistan and one of the top five investors, he noted. “The United States is the third source of remittances to Pakistan…and home to probably one of the most influential, dynamic Pakistani diaspora anywhere in the world,” Khan enthused. In addition, Pakistan’s military leadership is often trained in the United States.
The Indo-Pacific, the ambassador pointed out, is an important priority for President Biden’s administration and Pakistan is one of the largest littoral states on the Indian Ocean rim. “We have a good history of maritime cooperation,” he said. Because of these issues, in addition to important trade and investment partnerships, Khan expects Pakistan’s relationship with the US to “remain aligned.”
Also, ISIS-K is seen as a threat to most regional countries, including Afghanistan, Khan stated, giving the two countries “another good reason to work together.”
Pakistan and the US need candid discussions, however, on Afghanistan, the role of the Taliban and Pakistan’s previous contributions in combating al-Qaeda, he added.
“In the bilateral relationship, Afghanistan remains the principal and primary preoccupation,” Khan stated. “I think our ability to get Afghanistan right and to continue to pursue our commonly aligned interest…would largely…influence the trajectory of the future of Pakistan’s relationship with the West.” Pursuing an engagement tract with the Taliban “clearly gives us a good possibility of influencing developments in Afghanistan.”
Right now, he continued, “for Pakistan and for every other country in the region, the highest priority is to not let things fall apart and to make sure that the situation does not divulge into a civil war… and that we avoid a humanitarian catastrophe.” If the situation deteriorates and causes a large flow of refugees – which he pointed out has not happened yet, then “Pakistan will be affected, along with other countries in the region,” he lamented. “Our National Security Committee issued a statement a month ago where we clearly called upon the Taliban government to uphold the rule of law, to respect human rights and women’s rights and to create an inclusive government where they have representation.”
Offering discussant’s comments, Colonel (ret.) David O. Smith, Distinguished Fellow with the Stimson Center’s South Asia program, opined that the internal security situation in Pakistan is deteriorating and that its relationship with India has been bad for years. He also asserted that some officials in the United States government have “differing points of cooperation on counterterrorism” than possibly those of Pakistan.
But, he added: “The United States cannot walk away from Pakistan. We walked before in 1965, 197l and 1990 and many would say we have been having a slow-moving walk away ever since 2011. These were grave mistakes and they need not be repeated now.”
“We have three key interests that are connected to Pakistan,” Smith pointed out. “There is a continuing risk of terrorism directed against the United States by al-Qaeda and the Islamic State that has to be taken care of. We still are concerned about the safety and security of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal and there is the need to prevent a future war from India and Pakistan that could escalate to the nuclear level. All of this means that whether we like it or not and whether we are upset about Afghanistan or not we have to find a way to work together to do what we can to ameliorate what has happened in that country [Afghanistan].”
Khan avowed that Pakistan’s interests in Afghanistan are “aligned” with those of the United States. “We are on the same side and we are keen to work together, not just with the United States, but with all other key players in the region to work for peace,” he stated.
“The best counterterrorism investment in Afghanistan is to invest in peace,” Khan averred. “Terrorism has been a common concern and one that is shared by practically every country in the region. For Pakistan, we have facilitated and we will continue to facilitate any and every effort which aims at securing peace in Afghanistan.”
Pakistan highly values its relationship with the United States, the ambassador stressed. “We value this friendship. We still believe that our collaboration and cooperation has contributed to peace, security and stability in the region and to the prosperity of Pakistan.”
(Elaine Pasquini is a freelance journalist. Her reports appear in the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs and Nuze.Ink.)
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