CSS 2008 Solved Current Affairs Past Papers | Pak-US Relations and International terrorism
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Question breakdown
This question has one part, i.e., various dimensions of Pakistan-US Relations in the Wake of Pakistan’s Playing the Role as a Frontline State Against International Terrorism.
Outline
1-Introduction
2-Historical Overview of Pakistan-U.S. Relations
3-Strategic Cooperation in Counterterrorism
4-Diplomatic Dimensions of Pakistan-U.S. Relations
- ✓Strengthened Alliances
- ✓Challenges and Tensions
5-Economic Dimensions of the Partnership
- ✓U.S. Aid and Support
- ✓Economic Dependency Concerns
6-Military Collaboration and Controversies
- ✓Joint Operations and Military Aid
- ✓Sovereignty and Public Opinion
7-Social and Cultural Impact
- ✓Anti-American Sentiment
- ✓Changes in Domestic Policy and Governance
8-Critical Analysis
9-Conclusion
Introduction
The relationships between Pakistan and the United States have been marked by periodic strains since the mid-20th century, with the two countries moving through periods of tension and detente dependent on the changing geopolitics between a combination of the priorities of both countries and their simultaneous goals. After 9/11, Pakistan became a frontline state in the fight against terrorism, and the bottom line is that the alliance deepened considerably. This critical partnership is multi-dimensional, beginning with history — that is, the historical overview of the partnership features changing cooperation and divergence levels. The U.S.-Pakistan alliance has strategically been based on all counter-terrorism collaboration, intelligence sharing and military operations. The country’s alliance with the US is strengthened diplomatically, but simultaneously betrayed because the two countries constantly clash because of their conflicting national interests. The US aid is economically extensive — economically critical for Pakistan — but on the question of dependency, it marks the relationship. When there is a need to engage in joint operations between countries of the same continent without the capacity and space to help themselves, cooperation in the military sphere has been indispensable between countries. At the same time, however, sovereignty and public opinion have been questions that made such a collaborative project possible. Nevertheless, the partnership has also broadened, extending into domestic policy — including making opponents of America in selected pockets of the Pakistani public. An analysis of the multifield aspects of this partnership offers a deeper understanding of its challenges and benefits. In effect, Pakistan’s status as a primary US ally in the fight against terrorism has reframed the bilateral relationship in ways that provided strategic opportunities but suggested a delicate, willing balance between national interests and national autonomy.
Historical Overview of Pakistan-U.S. Relations
The Pakistan-US relations have witnessed substantial oscillations because of the changing balance of power in the world and the emerging domain of shared concerns. Since the 1950s, Pakistan has joined sides with the US during the Cold War and joined organizations such as SEATO and CENTO in opposition to the Soviets. This strategic partnership was further strengthened during the Soviet-Afghan war in the 1980s when Pakistan played an essential role in providing support to the Afghan resistance to the Soviet Union forces with the cooperation of the United States of America. However, the relationship was not very strong in the 1990s when the US put sanctions on Pakistan because of nuclear proliferation, which led to a time of lack of diplomatic closeness and a complete deadlock between the countries. Nonetheless, the geopolitical dynamics changed again, as the 9/11 events turned a critical point where once again Pakistan joined the front line, this time against international terrorism. A new cooperation relationship emerged as Pakistan allowed the US to establish a base for counter-terrorism, military cooperation, and economic aid. Thus, although there were some successful periods of cooperation in the alliance, sceptical and different strategic interests have always played the basis of the bilateral cooperation between Pakistan and the United States, and they persist until today.
Strategic Cooperation in Counterterrorism
Since the event of 9/11, Pakistan has become a critical partner for the US in the War on Terror because of its strategic location and intelligence resources, which can contribute to the U.S.-led destruction of terrorist networks. This was, of course, as a frontline state, and Pakistan provided logistical support, shared intelligence, and used its airbases to facilitate US operations in neighbouring Afghanistan, which were vital. Together, the countries were able to conduct joint operations against High Profile Terrorist Groups such as al-Qaeda in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region. ISI was very instrumental in getting key al-Qaeda figures and helped in the accomplishment of anti-terrorism worldwide. Nevertheless, just like this cooperation, it has not been without friction and mistrust resulting from differing priorities. The US wanted to be decisive against all militant groups, but Pakistan also needed to balance a variety of internal security, regional, and complex Afghanistan-based security concerns. While these issues exist, counter-terrorism cooperation is a central component of Pakistan-U.S. relations, with evergreen complications stemming from the relative autonomy each country grants security and geopolitical concerns.
Diplomatic Dimensions of Pakistan-U.S. Relations
- ✓ Strengthened Alliances
The US War on Terror had simultaneously strengthened diplomatic relations between the US and Pakistan, domestically in South Asia. It is meant to underscore Pakistan’s importance in US foreign policy and the alliance it has been in for decades. In return, Pakistan got diplomatic support for its cause on a fundamental critical issue involving meeting commitments for assistance and support in the world forums. The US had also backed Pakistan’s contribution to Afghanistan as a counter-terrorism force and in maintaining regional peace. The hope was to work together to help in the common cause of regional peace and counter-terrorism.
- ✓ Challenges and Tensions
However, Pakistani and US relations have frequently been plagued by rifts in diplomatic relations due to a clash of Pakistani and US interests and priorities. Like the US, Pakistan has been asked repeatedly to act decisively against all militant groups (including those Pakistan views as indispensable to its regional strategy. Pakistan, on occasion, has not resisted this pressure, however, due to its complicated relations with neighbours Afghanistan and India. The recent incidents like US drone strikes in the Pakistani territory, which are very unpopular for the reasons of sovereignty, have made it reach new lows in the area of diplomatic relations. Balancing difficult cooperation with their troubling relationship is central to the diplomatic value of Pakistan-U.S. relations, which often appear together yet filled with tension and varying interests.
Economic Dimensions of the Partnership
- ✓ U.S. Aid and Support
The US has always been a generous sponsor of economic assistance to Pakistan. However, with strict conditionalities, Pakistan has provided several aid packages to help Pakistan play its role in fighting terrorism. In the wake of 9/11, the US dispatched billions to Pakistan on military and economic aid, allowing for the stabilization of the economy and helping to advance development initiatives. Take, for instance, aid delivered to Pakistan since 2002, with about $10 billion transferred in military support and public sector development. Pakistan has thus been able to augment its counter-terrorism capabilities and address the need for critical infrastructure development, making it a case in point of the economic value of its alliance with the US.
- ✓ Economic Dependency Concerns
Despite the aid from the US that has helped strengthen Pakistan’s economy, the same aid has also been raising concerns about dependence because, essentially, significant portions of Pakistan’s budget are related to foreign assistance. For example, reliance on aid can weaken economic autonomy, making Pakistan vulnerable to fluctuations in US aid that can directly affect Pakistan’s economic stability. Additionally, some aid packages have come with conditionalities, providing sustenance for public debate within Pakistan regarding prices of allaying too close a relationship with US policy goals. The arising concerns reflect the tensions Pakistan must resolve while balancing short-term economic gains and longer-term requirements for sustainable growth.
Military Collaboration and Controversies
- ✓ Joint Operations and Military Aid
The involvement of Pakistan and the US in the War on Terror is closely linked with military collaboration between the two, which has been crucial for Pakistan to maintain counter-terrorism capabilities. The US training, intelligence, and military equipment for Pakistan’s armed forces helped secure its violent borders. The two nations jointly worked on the highest-priority security threats through intelligence sharing and targeted missions, and both conducted joint operations. As a severe ally, Pakistan played a pivotal role in helping it meet the country’s immediate security challenges.
- ✓ Sovereignty and Public Opinion
The two nations are locked in a controversy over the military partnership on issues relating to Pakistan’s sovereignty. Tension has been focused on US drone strikes in Pakistan’s tribal areas, where strike missions aimed at neutralizing militants in the region have so frequently proved deadly for civilians that the Pakistani people are outraged. As this trend starts to reverse, opinion about these interventions has moved away from an acceptance of them as violative of Pakistan’s sovereignty to seeing them as a violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty, even as the assumptions about the military’s value to security become more complex in that the military is viewed as essential to security but also a challenge to Pakistan’s so-called national integrity. That duality is, therefore, instructive to Pakistan in delicately negotiating this yellow line between assisting US security needs on the one hand and its public’s frayed sense of the limits of sovereignty on the other.
Social and Cultural Impact
- ✓ Anti-American Sentiment
The social impact of the alliance with the US in Pakistan has been the presence of anti-American feelings among the Pakistani population at some level. Many Pakistanis question US policies — military interventions and drone strikes, for example — because they erode Pakistan’s sovereignty, as well as because they do not treat civilian lives seriously. Yet there has been media and public coverage, too, of these actions of the US as intrusive and imperialist. Nevertheless, as the government works with the US, that scorn has generated cracks internally in Pakistani society that have upset its domestic political climate and rendered mutual diplomacy nearly impossible.
- ✓ Changes in Domestic Policy and Governance
In like manner, Pakistan has adhered to domestic policy and governance, especially security legislation and counter-terrorism measures shaped by its relations with the US. These policies targeting terrorist financing, surveillance, and border security follow US expectations. These policies to improve security have sometimes triggered debates on civil liberties and governance. In doing so, the US alliance has tried to craft the outlines of Pakistan’s domestic governance and security policies – revealing the ethnic, religious, and social nuances of the central focus of counter-terrorism.
Critical Analysis
By taking a critical approach to the US-Pakistan partnership (particularly since 9/11), it is the case that, although it provides economic and military benefits to Pakistan, her alliance with the United States has rendered some of its core strategic vulnerabilities exposed and called into question the long-term cost of this relationship. Furthermore, the country has been offered large amounts of help because the economy is in a poor state of overall health due to the straining of the economy. Foreign assistance is also essential to the country, often contingent on strings. However, creating this dependency comes with the danger that pursuing short-term gains undermines their long-term economic self-sufficiency. In terms of relations on the military front, joint operations with the support of the US have helped Pakistan improve its response to counter-terrorism. Nonetheless, that has been at the cost of Pakistani sovereignty, as Washington’s US drone attacks and other unilateral missions continue within Pakistan’s borders. The public backlash against these interventions has fostered anti-American sentiment in Pakistan, making it difficult for Pakistan to bring to bear whatever they possibly can do in support of US initiatives without jeopardizing them at home. Moreover, Pakistan’s flexibility in playing one strategy against another can be used in the short term to meet immediate US needs in testing periods of disengagement, as recently demonstrated. The lack of a consistent backed-up commitment leads to doubt of the US as a reliable partner. However, in the long run, the frontline role of Pakistan in the anti-terrorism war has many strategic advantages for Pakistan; at the same time, it also has its own cost because the alliance with the US could challenge Pakistan’s sovereignty, could not be in line with the public support in Pakistan, and could make Pakistan dependent on it which can alter short term stability and independence of Pakistan.
Conclusion
To conclude, Pakistan’s role as a frontline state in the War on Terror proved to have been multifaceted, and the relationship between Pakistan and the United States has been multifaceted. It has helped Pakistan economically, with military support and a high diplomatic profile and has helped Pakistan strengthen its counter-terrorism capabilities. At the same time, though, this alliance has underscored the delicate line between dependency, sovereignty and patriotic sensibility, strength and weakness, and painted a picture of what happens when a superpower becomes a close partner of choice. Further, Pakistan must now meet the immediate costs of US support to benefit its short to midterm goal of self-reliability, public trust, and long-term management of conducting foreign relations. A more independent approach that diversifies alliances forges stronger regional partnerships and will help Pakistan solve its security and economic needs without sacrificing sovereignty and autonomy. Therefore, Pakistan could also provide a foreign policy that suits its interests by maintaining stability at the speed of global development.
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