Obama must assist Pakistan, not punish it

Seven weeks after the elimination of Osama bin Laden, the fallout of the American operation continues to wreak havoc in the US-Pakistan bilateral relationship.

Despite reassurances from US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, stating categorically after her visit to Islamabad two weeks ago that there was no evidence anyone in the Pakistan hierarchy was aware of bin Laden’s presence, bilateral relations have gone from bad to worse since then.

One cannot sufficiently stress how humiliating the unilateral US operation was for the Pakistan army, the only truly national institution.

Accordingly, it has badly hurt its standing in the eyes of the Pakistani public.

As a reaction to the bin Laden operation and to reclaim the initiative in US-Pakistan relations, the Pakistani government and army have taken several steps.

Unfortunately, many of these have complicated matters.

(This blog was first published in The Australian, 20 June 2011. For the full text of this piece, see: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/obama-must-assist-pakistan-not-punish-it/story-e6frg6ux-1226078089312 )