US resumes aid to terror-tainted Pakistan
When Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif landed at Andrews Air Force Base in Washington, DC, on Sunday, he must have been mighty pleased with the warm reception he got — a hefty billion-dollar welcome package awaited him, apart from the large contingent of senior officials from the White House and the State Department. Just prior to his arrival on a four-day official tour, which will culminate on Wednesday with a state dinner hosted by President Barack Obama, the US Administration decided to restart its $1.162 billion military and economic assistance programme to Pakistan. Much of this aid package was suspended after bilateral ties went on the downward spiral during 2011 and 2012. The relationship hit a bad patch when a CIA contractor killed two Pakistanis in lahore, then soured over the unilateral raid that the US Navy SEAl team conducted, killing Osama Bin laden in Abbottabad, and finally hit rock bottom after an American airstrike eliminated 24 Pakistani soldiers near the Afghan border. The entire phase was played out against the backdrop of increasing American disappointment with Pakistan's failure to fight terror and indeed the latter’s duplicity in its dealings with groups such as the lashkar-e-Tayyeba, which the ISI nurtures primarily to fight a proxy war against India. It was also during this time that several top US officials publicly spoke against the Pakistani establishment's policy of running with the hare and hunting with the hound. Yet in recent months, Washington has been more than willing to kiss and make up with Islamabad. Throughout July and August, the State Department sought to impress upon Congress the importance of enhancing Pakistan's anti-terrorism capabilities on the ground that there has been a “noted confluence of signs of greater cooperation”, though the State Department admits there has been no single event to demonstrate the change of heart.
The resumption of aid to Pakistan could be to ensure Islamabad's support in Afghanistan post the 2014 drawdown or it could be proof of the resilience of the US-Pakistan partnership or even the product of Prime Minister Sharif's smart diplomacy. Either which way, it doesn't look good for New Delhi. It was just days ago that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh made a strong case against Pakistan during his meeting with President Obama, highlighting terror networks that flourish on Pakistani soil. Clearly, his words had made little impact on the White House. Perhaps this was only to be expected for more reasons than one.
The Obama Administration has consistently sought to appease Islamabad, and this was evident even on Sunday when Secretary of State John Kerry (perceived to be ‘pro-Pakistan'), met with Mr Sharif — their third meeting in three months — and said that the US's ties with Pakistan “could not be more important”. Such effusive American support has naturally emboldened Pakistan. As expected, Prime Minister Sharif has lapped up the opportunity to seek international intervention to resolve the Kashmir dispute, even though both New Delhi and Islamabad have agreed that the problem is strictly bilateral in nature. Thankfully, Washington is not going to oblige Mr Sharif in this matter.