Islamabad : “We are decidedly on an economic security paradigm and are focused on working with our geo-economic location as opposed to its strategic elements,” said the Special Assistant to PM on National Security Division and Strategic Policy Planning Dr. Moeed Yusuf, at the launch of a report at a crossroads moment in Pak-US relations. He further said, “Our economic security paradigm has three elements: connectivity, development partnerships and responsibility within our borders.”
Policymakers in Islamabad and Washington DC have a unique opportunity to usher in a new era in their relationship. The Doha Peace Process, the impact of Covid-19 and the US’s escalating power competition with China, all represent challenges that are better tackled if Pakistan and the new US administration of President Joe Biden, work together.
A new report titled “Pak-Americana: Ushering in a New Era of Pakistan-US Relations” was launched at an event in Islamabad today, with speeches by Special Assistant to the Prime Minister for National Security, Dr Moeed Yusuf, and Pakistan’s Ambassador at Large for Foreign Investment, and former Ambassador to the United States, Ali Jahangir Siddiqui. Siddiqui said, “It is increasingly in the interest of both countries to re-establish a closer bilateral relationship, transitioning from geopolitics to geoeconomics.”
The report argues that the current crossroads moment can be an opportunity to improve Pakistan-US relations. The report was curated through a consultative process that convened a diverse group of experts to deliberate on the key drivers of the relationship and the way forward. The experts’ group includes former Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir, former Chief of General Staff of the Pakistan Army, Lt Gen Waheed Arshad, University of Lahore academic, Dr Rabia Akhtar, CEO of the Pakistan Business Council, Ehsan Malik, former Board of Investment Chairperson Haroon Sharif and several renowned experts in academia and the private sector.
The report highlights the following seven key drivers of Pakistan-US engagement that Pakistani policymakers must consider in forging a more robust, resilient and mutually beneficial bilateral partnership with the United States.
1. Transitioning from geo-political to geo-economic cooperation: The focus of Pakistan’s engagement with the US needs to be trade, regional cooperation and economic growth rather than the historical dependence on geopolitics and geostrategic location.
2. Bolstering human security and investing in the people: Pakistan must seek ways to increase the access of young Pakistanis to higher education opportunities and advanced academic achievement on US university campuses. Pakistan origin Americans and the wider Pakistani diaspora in the US must also be key informants of Pakistan’s engagement with the US.
3. Partnering for Afghanistan’s future: Pakistan has proactively supported peace in Afghanistan. It must continue to emphasize the need for an Afghan-owned governance model, acceptable to the people of Afghanistan, and inclusive of all key political actors in that country.
4. Turning great power competition into great power collaboration: Pakistan must invest in its diplomatic capability to help both Washington DC and Beijing as an interlocuter that can help the US and China to pursue shared interests and avoid conflict.
5. Contending with the India-US strategic alignment: Pakistan must persuade the US to avoid allowing newfound convergence with New Delhi to compromise Pakistan’s national security or Pakistani interests. It must also continue to highlight the risks of US acquiescence to Indian action that vitiate the regional atmosphere, including its continued occupation of Kashmir.
6. Countering global terrorism: Pakistan has a demonstrable capability in counter-terrorism that should be the basis of deeper cooperation with the US, including in intelligence cooperation for counter-terrorism.
7. Enhancing disaster and climate change mitigation through cooperation: Pakistan should engage with President Biden’s Special Envoy on Climate, John Kerry, for dialogue on deepening bilateral cooperation against climate threats.