Former ambassador Maleeha Lodhi. PHOTO: twitter.com/LodhiMaleeha
Maleeha Lodhi, Pakistan’s former permanent representative to the United Nations, has said that how to deal with Kabul remains a major security and foreign policy challenge and a serious political dilemma for Pakistan.
“There are obvious limits to a coercive approach and military response, as a complete breakdown in relations with Afghanistan is not in Pakistan’s interest, especially as relations with India remain very tense,” the diplomat said while speaking at Georgetown University in Washington DC.
According to Maleeha, for decades Pakistan’s foreign and security policy aimed to avoid a two-front scenario of hot borders with its neighbours, but it now faces unstable and insecure borders on both the western and eastern fronts.
He said the current tensions in India-US relations are temporary in nature. Despite the tensions, India remains the United States’ preferred partner in the region, especially in its Indo-Pacific strategy. This and the nature of US-India military cooperation have obvious implications for Pakistan-US ties.
Maleeha said she was the current administration’s American politician based on flattery, attractive trade deals and a willingness to align with Trump’s agenda in the Middle East.
“These are short-term factors, based on Trump’s whims and will not outlast him and may not even survive the course of the current administration. Therefore, the challenge of a reset based on real substance still needs to be addressed.”
He said the pick-up in Pakistan-US relations is epitomized by a series of meetings between top leaders of the two countries and Trump’s positive statements on Pakistan.
According to her, Trump’s positive stance has been determined by several factors, including two victories he won in Pakistan at the beginning of his term.
“One, the handover of the terrorist responsible for the Kabul attack that killed American soldiers. The second victory was Pakistani leaders giving Trump credit for ending the May conflict with India and then ingratiating themselves by nominating Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize. This has been reinforced by the bid on critical minerals and cryptocurrency trade deals.
“But rather than hastily concluding that the relationship is now on a sustainable upswing, I would say that the new engagement has paved the way for reestablishing ties, which is still a work in progress.”
He warned against the overly optimistic view found in official circles and among some analysts about the advent of a bright new era for Pakistan-US relations. According to the diplomat, a more measured view is needed for several reasons.
“First, so far, change is based on a personalized relationship. That makes it short-term because lasting relationships are based on shared interests between countries, not on personal predilections,” he added.
