Terms of Engagement

Regarding collaboration, Pakistan and the U.S. have various security and non-security partnerships. In the security context, both countries have defence, military and intelligence-sharing ties; they conduct joint armed forces exercises and various training programmes, etc. Regarding non-security affairs, both countries collaborate in energy, trade and investment, education and healthcare, clean energy and combating the climate crisis, technology, Afghanistan stabilization, counterterrorism, and counter-piracy operations. We believe a harmonious strategic alignment will create a constructive environment for scaling up Pakistan-U.S. bilateral ties, especially in the economic, technological, and educational domains.

To fight the COVID-19 pandemic, the US delivered 79 million vaccine doses, making it the largest donor to Pakistan. Despite COVID-19 and other fluctuations, the US remains the largest export market for Pakistan. In 2021-22, our trade increased from $8.4 billion to $12 billion. Pakistan’s exports went up from $7 billion to $9 billion, of which IT exports were $1 billion. However, global technology investors and venture capitalists, mainly from the US, are taking the lead in unlocking new business ecosystems in Pakistan, especially in the tech sector. Thousands of successful start-ups have sprung up in the past two years. They thrive in fintech, e-commerce, health tech, agri-tech, retail, transportation, logistics, supply chains, construction, and real estate businesses.

The U.S. conglomerates and multinational corporations have done good business in Pakistan for decades. These include top brands like Procter & Gamble, Abbot, Cargill, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and others. Altogether, eighty American enterprises give jobs to nearly 150,000 people and sustain more than a million households. In Pakistan-U.S. relations, the contribution of the almost one million-strong Pakistani-American community has become a rock-hard bridge between the two countries. Many of them, who have excelled in the US, are investing in businesses and carving new keystones for our connectivity. To prepare them for the markets, we have to work on the quality and training of the 300,000 students, including an increasing number of women who graduate yearly from some 200 universities. Establishing Lincoln Corners in Pakistani Universities is a good starting point. Let’s have Pakistan Chairs in American Universities too.

Pakistan emits less than 0.4 percent of global greenhouse gasses, yet it is the eighth most vulnerable country to climate change. Pakistan appreciated the U.S. recent initiative announced by Ambassador Donald Blome in Islamabad to launch a Green Alliance. High-level visits and communication have given a fresh impetus to Islamabad’s endeavours to recalibrate, reenergize, and rejuvenate a broad-based relationship. It would be a practical, pragmatic, and realistic correlative without a mismatch of expectations.

Regarding public sentiments, firstly, as Pakistanis, we feel that the U.S., a long-time friend of Pakistan, seldom acknowledged our contribution (financial and human loss) to the War on Terror. Hence, acknowledging the Pakistani government and its people’s contribution to the War on Terror would have strengthened Islamabad’s stance on eradicating the militancy in the region and beyond. Secondly, the people of Pakistan expected U.S. support in easing the IMF conditions during the programme period. The country’s leading economists believe that the last and current IMF programme is the harshest ever given to any developing country such as Pakistan. The people of Pakistan also expect a long-time cordial friend to help Pakistan during the worst financial time in the history of Pakistan. Standing by Pakistan during the IMF programme would have set a clear precedent for struggling economies to count on the world’s most powerful country in times of crisis!