One could not help but note that the American delegation led by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton seemed somewhat apologetic and perhaps even a little ill at ease during the meeting with Prime Minister Gilani, Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar and COAS General Kayani. The realisation at the back of their heads that Pakistan had come of age, since it was instead asking the Americans to do more to eliminate terrorist sanctuaries inside Afghanistan was obvious. The tone and tenor of the delegation sometimes echoed frustration as they made attempts at asserting themselves on our leaders. Prime Minister Gilani in no uncertain terms rebuffed the notion that Pakistans sovereignty would be allowed to be taken for granted. He snubbed the Americans again when he told them about the APCs resolution and the firm reaction it demanded in the case of Americans continuing with their aggressive designs. This firm resolve of the leadership particularly Mr Gilani was not lost on Secretary Clinton who later in the day remarked that Pakistan could bring the Haqqani network and other outfits on to the conference table. Secretary Clintons statement that Blackwater was not directly working in Pakistan should remove doubts about the presence of the agency on our soil. Likewise, a fact that proves that the US has no regard for civilian loss of life was her refusal to express remorse at the deaths caused by drone attacks. While according to US media claims, only 2.7 percent of the total fatalities of 9,000 are estimated to be militants, it is obvious that even out of this 2.7 percent, the percentage of actual operatives killed is far less. A large number of those killed are innocent men, women and children. The US has an unfortunate history of having propped up leaders like Bhutto, Sukarno, Ben Bella, Qaddafi, Shah of Iran and later when they refused to toe the American line, they were made horrible examples of. As the US is now pressurising Pakistan to take on groups which were not long ago bred and reared by the Reagan Administration the same order seems to be in play. Such a double standard in dealing with the world - one rule for yourself and another for everyone else - is the root cause of the reputation of mistrust and dislike that the reputation of the world's only Superpower enjoys nowadays.