ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the United States share a long history that goes back seven and a half decades, an American foreign policy analyst has said.
Daniel Markey, who has studied the US-Pakistan relationship for two decades and is a Senior Fellow in the South Asia Program at the Stimson Center, spoke to Pakistan TV Digital’s South Speaks with Saqib.
Markey said the relationship has had its ups and downs, but the two countries know each other well, while noting that the current warmth between Islamabad and Washington marks a significant shift from expectations in Washington.
“The relationship is long and it’s had its ups and downs. Both sides should know each other pretty well,” Markey said.
He said Pakistanis have watched the United States closely over the years.
“Perhaps Pakistanis know the United States and have watched the United States more closely, relatively speaking, than US policy makers have,” he said.
Markey said the current warmth between the two countries is a big change from what many expected.
“It’s a remarkable change. It’s one that I don’t think many of us in Washington DC had anticipated,” he said.
He said the shift is being driven by shared interests such as counterterrorism and critical minerals, and by Pakistan’s own effort to work closely with Washington.
“Pakistan’s own choices to be particularly eager to work with Washington to cultivate that relationship,” he said, also pointing to Pakistan’s role in the Middle East as the Iran war picked up pace.
Markey said Pakistan’s trilateral defense agreement with Saudi Arabia and Turkiye has already made the country more relevant to the West.
“I think that it already has made Pakistan more relevant for the West, and I think that in itself is a significant accomplishment,” he said.
He said Pakistan has taken a leading role during a moment of deep uncertainty in the Middle East, which has made it important not just to the US but to Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and possibly Egypt as well.
On how to make the relationship more durable going forward, Markey said both countries should stay realistic about what the relationship actually is.
He said this can include Pakistan’s role as a security provider in the Middle East, its help fighting groups like Al-Qaeda and Daesh, and shared economic interests such as critical minerals.
“Access to US markets has always been a goal for Pakistan. I think that’s improved marginally,” he said, adding that closer ties with the global economy and greater openness to American business will also benefit Pakistan going forward.