Islamabad Pakistan has explained that its nuclear status serves as a deterrent against India. But Washington’s retreat has brought other powers closer together.
Relations between Pakistan and the United States , once allies in the fight against terrorism , are at an all-time low and the words of John Finer , deputy national security adviser in the Biden administration , confirm a new rift between the parties. Finer , whose words were reported by Reuters , explained to the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace that Islamabad ‘s development of a long-range missile program makes Pakistan “an emerging threat” and that if this trend continues ” Pakistan will have the ability to strike far outside the borders of South Asia, including the United States”.
Two senior Biden administration officials clarified to Reuters that US concerns about Islamabad ‘s missile program have been present for some time and are linked to the size of the launchers that are being developed. The officials added that Finer ‘s comments are intended to put pressure on Pakistan to explain why it has decided to focus on more powerful missile engines. Washington also imposed additional sanctions on Islamabad over the project, this time targeting the governmental body in charge of the matter.
Relations between the United States and Pakistan have experienced ups and downs over the past few decades and have been undermined by the Biden administration’s rapprochement with India’s nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi . New Delhi is a bitter enemy of Islamabad and the Pakistani government has explained . That its nuclear power status and missile programs are intended as a deterrent against India and as a factor in maintaining regional stability.
The line that Trump will pursue could cause new fractures with Islamabad because several important figures . Chosen by the president-elect himself are considered closer to India than to Pakistan . It is not a given, then, that the new Head of State intends to invest politically in relations with an unstable and problematic nation with Pakistan . Subject to a serious economic crisis and prey to several fronts of internal instability.
Washington ‘s departure has favored a strengthening of relations with Russia and China , already a key regional partner of Islamabad . Beijing has invested in the Asian nation thanks to the China-Pakistan economic corridor , part of the broader New Silk Road , and Islamabad joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in 2017 , an international security forum dominated by Moscow and Beijing .
Relations with the Kremlin have experienced a new phase of expansion. Thanks to the agreement for Russian participation in the construction of the gas pipeline between Karachi and Lahore, while in 2022 the first joint military exercises between the armies of the two states took place . The invasion of Ukraine has boosted bilateral trade, which reached one billion dollars in 2024. However, there are some obstacles to Moscow ‘s further penetration on the field.
Russia and India have fruitful relations in various fields, including military supplies , and an excessive rapprochement between Moscow and Islamabad risks alienating New Delhi. Causing the loss of a strategic ally. Pakistan depends on loans from the International Monetary Fund. For its economic survival and cannot afford to alienate the sympathies of an important pro-Western institution. Internal instability is also a limit .
And the events involving former Prime Minister Imran Khan . Who is under arrest and the subject of various accusations, demonstrate this. Khan ‘s followers have demonstrated to demand the release of the political leader. Clashing with the security forces and his future appears uncertain. Various terrorist groups operate in the country , from the separatists of Baluchistan to groups linked to Islamic extremism. Which carry out periodic attacks and make coexistence with religious minorities difficult .https://youtu.be/i5fQguf_MDk?si=kJbAvoikSU9dCr85