AFTER withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan in August 2021, the US appears to have downsized its relations with Pakistan. President Joe Biden did not make any contact with Pakistan’s leadership for the first three years of his presidency. It is only in March this year that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif received an unsigned letter from him underscoring the “enduring partnership” between the two nations and identifying areas where they could work together. Biden’s letter was generally welcomed in Pakistan because of the country’s policy to maintain mutually beneficial ties with all major powers, including the US with which it has had sustained periods of close cooperation.
However, the letter has not fundamentally altered the tenor of the bilateral relationship, though some official contacts have started. The acting undersecretary for political affairs visited Islamabad recently for talks on bilateral ties, including regional security issues. Our prime minister sent a short reply to Biden’s letter, and the current US ambassador to Pakistan seems inclined to enhance bilateral ties.