The ebb tide
Rawalpindi blinks on NATO blockade,and underlines Paks diminishing leverage with US
Rawalpindi blinks on NATO blockade,and underlines Paks diminishing leverage with US
After months of blockading supplies to the US and NATO forces in Afghanistan,Rawalpindi has been compelled to reopen ground lines of communication through the territory of Pakistan. The US,in turn,has issued an invitation to Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari to participate in the NATO summit in Chicago next week. For forms sake,Washington has said the invitation,which followed weeks of intense negotiations between the two sides,is unconditional. The US,to be sure,is eager to give Pakistan a face-saver and renew bilateral cooperation. But there is no denying that Rawalpindi,where the Pakistan army is headquartered,played one of its geopolitical aces of denying NATO physical access to Afghanistan and lost.
Following armed skirmishes on the Afghan border in November,in which NATO forces killed more than 20 Pakistan soldiers,Rawalpindi declared a blockade and put conditions for the resumption of supplies. These included an apology from the US and an end to drone strikes on Pakistans western borderlands where al-Qaeda and other militant groups like the Haqqani network have enjoyed sanctuary. The US expressed regret for the November incident,but President Barack Obama was not willing to apologise in an election year. Nor would he agree to end the use of drones. The US held back on aid to Pakistan. Washington also reminded Rawalpindi that it has a say in mobilising the international financial assistance to shore up the parlous Pakistan economy.
Having failed to mobilise alternative financial support from China or Saudi Arabia,Rawalpindi had to climb down. Amid the turbulence in the relations with Pakistan in recent years,NATO had reduced the dependence on Pakistans territory to supply its forces in Afghanistan by developing the Northern Distribution Network through Russia and Central Asia. As the US draws down its forces in Afghanistan,its reliance on Pakistan will come down. The reopening of NATOs land routes through Pakistan does not resolve the many contradictions between Washington and Rawalpindi on Afghanistan. What it underlines is that Rawalpindis leverage with Washington has begun to diminish. It remains to be seen whether Washington has the wisdom to put it to good use.
Share
