As expected nothing much of consequence resulted from the meeting between US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Marc Grossman and Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar in Islamabad. The US delegation also held a meeting with COAS General Ashfaq Pervaiz Kayani. Mr Grossman was reportedly asked for a review of the Pak-US relations in line with parliament’s recommendations. He, however, assured that his government was ready to settle issues like CSF delayed payments with Pakistan.
However, on the real issues bedevilling the ties mainly drone strikes, apology over Salalah attack and new terms of engagement, the US side maintained its proverbial intransigence. On certain occasions during the meetings and in the press conference when tough questions were asked Mr Grossman as well as US Ambassador tried to make off-the-cuff remarks. One such instance was when Mr Munter started talking about something else when asked whether the US was serious in stopping the drone strikes. With Islamabad’s main worries going unaddressed, Foreign Minister Khar also responded rightly by refusing to announce the reopening of the Nato supplies for the time being. This is surely a crumb of comfort. In fact a day before Grossman’s arrival Ms Khar had expressed her frustration by saying that though the government was pressurising the US to stop the drone strikes, it was not even ready to listen. Hence it is about time the government got tough with its ally by employing internationally applied legal force in bringing an end to drone warfare. The ban on the Nato supplies should be considered indefinite for now. Although there is considerable US pressure on the government to reopen the route, circumstances demand that we stick to our guns. For the Pak-US equation to be fixed, it is imperative that we are regarded as equals, not serfs.
If the Special Representative only came to assure Pakistan's army that he was trying to make the CSF payments, then it clearly means that the US has not had a change of heart with respect to reviewing ties with the civilian government in Pakistan, a perception that his visit purports to generate. Consequently any discussion on new terms of engagement will also be regarded as eyewash.