In light of Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif’s visit to Washington to meet with President Obama, the Council on Foreign Relations held a discussion on relations between the countries with Robert McMahon, editor of CFR.org, acting as a mediator.
Cameron Munter, former U.S. ambassador to Pakistan from 2010 to 2012 and current professor of international relations at Pomona College, was joined by Daniel Markey, Council on Foreign Relation’s senior fellow for India, Pakistan, and South Asia, with a new book out called, No Exit from Pakistan: America's Tortured Relationship with Islamabad.
Ambassador Munter, who had met with Prime Minister Sharif earlier in the day, said that Nawaz was “very judicious, very careful. He is making sure that he gets across a modern and moderate image. He was pleased with what the government has been able to do in the short time and energy, but that they have great challenges on foreign policy, and he focused not only on Pakistan, but on its immediate neighbors—Afghanistan, India—and when on to make sure that he gave a very positive gloss to what's been a very strained relationship in recent years to the Pakistani-American relationship.”
Daniel Markey laid out the why Pakistan matters to the United States in three points. First is the problem of Pakistan and their nuclear capabilities linked with their hostility towards India and the existence of terrorist networks. Terrorism is another concern with regional militant and sectarian groups active inside and outside of Pakistan. Finally, Markey points out that “Pakistan can’t be dealt with in a vacuum”, so relationships with China, India, and Afghanistan must also be considered.
In relation to the issue of terrorism, the Pakistani government, along with Pakistan’s other political parties, have decided that they want to entertain a dialogue with the Pakistani Taliban. Markey says he is skeptical of the idea of dialogue because the Pakistani Taliban has declared itself as completely anti-state. The drone issue was front and center in the discussion, to which Cameron Munter replied that U.S. leaders will also need to engage in talks with Pakistan about dealing with terrorism. He said that “talking about drones and the difficulties that drones have posed as an issue is only the prelude to talking about counterterrorism and the way in which both countries decide they're going to work together or not to try to deal with it.”
In Markey’s book, he reflects on the three main issues he addressed earlier, saying they are “too large and complicated for the United States to resolve quickly—or perhaps ever—yet they are also too important to neglect; there is no exit”. For now it will be important to see what happens in 2014 in Afghanistan and how Pakistan and India will react. Depending on how much dialogue Pakistan will actually be involved in concerning counter-terrorism will determine the future of drones and the high number of civilian causalities as a result. Markey noted that currently the U.S and Pakistan are in the third round of cooperation negotiations since 9/11 which will hopefully open the door to a stronger working relationship where solutions can be reached.
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Future of U.S. and Pakistan Relations
October 14, 2013
In light of Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif’s visit to Washington to meet with President Obama, the Council on Foreign Relations held a discussion on relations between the countries with Robert McMahon, editor of CFR.org, acting as a mediator.
Cameron Munter, former U.S. ambassador to Pakistan from 2010 to 2012 and current professor of international relations at Pomona College, was joined by Daniel Markey, Council on Foreign Relation’s senior fellow for India, Pakistan, and South Asia, with a new book out called, No Exit from Pakistan: America's Tortured Relationship with Islamabad.
Ambassador Munter, who had met with Prime Minister Sharif earlier in the day, said that Nawaz was “very judicious, very careful. He is making sure that he gets across a modern and moderate image. He was pleased with what the government has been able to do in the short time and energy, but that they have great challenges on foreign policy, and he focused not only on Pakistan, but on its immediate neighbors—Afghanistan, India—and when on to make sure that he gave a very positive gloss to what's been a very strained relationship in recent years to the Pakistani-American relationship.”
Daniel Markey laid out the why Pakistan matters to the United States in three points. First is the problem of Pakistan and their nuclear capabilities linked with their hostility towards India and the existence of terrorist networks. Terrorism is another concern with regional militant and sectarian groups active inside and outside of Pakistan. Finally, Markey points out that “Pakistan can’t be dealt with in a vacuum”, so relationships with China, India, and Afghanistan must also be considered.
In relation to the issue of terrorism, the Pakistani government, along with Pakistan’s other political parties, have decided that they want to entertain a dialogue with the Pakistani Taliban. Markey says he is skeptical of the idea of dialogue because the Pakistani Taliban has declared itself as completely anti-state. The drone issue was front and center in the discussion, to which Cameron Munter replied that U.S. leaders will also need to engage in talks with Pakistan about dealing with terrorism. He said that “talking about drones and the difficulties that drones have posed as an issue is only the prelude to talking about counterterrorism and the way in which both countries decide they're going to work together or not to try to deal with it.”
In Markey’s book, he reflects on the three main issues he addressed earlier, saying they are “too large and complicated for the United States to resolve quickly—or perhaps ever—yet they are also too important to neglect; there is no exit”. For now it will be important to see what happens in 2014 in Afghanistan and how Pakistan and India will react. Depending on how much dialogue Pakistan will actually be involved in concerning counter-terrorism will determine the future of drones and the high number of civilian causalities as a result. Markey noted that currently the U.S and Pakistan are in the third round of cooperation negotiations since 9/11 which will hopefully open the door to a stronger working relationship where solutions can be reached.
