Pakistan-US ties remain transactional 25 years after 9/11
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Twenty-five years after the September 11 attacks, Pakistan and the United States have again entered a period of warm relations driven by Pakistan's mediation between Washington and Tehran. The revival follows the collapse of urgency after the 2021 US withdrawal from Afghanistan. The relationship lacks independent commercial and institutional ties to sustain engagement beyond immediate geopolitical transactions.
Key Facts
- Pakistan became a frontline partner in the US-led war in Afghanistan after the September 11 attacks, providing logistical transit, intelligence, and military action.
- The US military withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021 removed much of the urgency behind Pakistan-US relations.
- Pakistan has again presented itself as a useful partner through mediation between Washington and Tehran, alongside cryptocurrency deals, critical mineral investments, and counterterrorism cooperation.
- India-US ties have survived serious political headwinds during President Donald Trump's second term because the relationship developed bottom-up institutional and economic constituencies.
Post-9/11 Partnership
The September 11 attacks transformed Pakistan's relationship with the United States almost overnight. Pakistan went from facing American sanctions and limited diplomatic attention to becoming a frontline partner in the US-led war in Afghanistan. In its counterterrorism cooperation, Pakistan offered vital ground- and air-based logistical transit to Afghanistan as well as intelligence and military action. In return, the United States provided financial reimbursement and military assistance in the form of subsidized sale of military hardware and technology.
Strains and Withdrawal
The relationship became increasingly strained as the two sides accused each other of failing to deliver what had been promised. Yet the two sides remained close as long as Washington needed Pakistan for the war in Afghanistan. When the US military withdrew from Afghanistan in August 2021, much of the urgency behind the relationship disappeared. Washington's political attention declined, although counterterrorism, trade, health, and other forms of engagement continued at the institutional level.
Current Revival and Structural Limits
Twenty-five years after 9/11, Pakistan and the United States appear to have entered another period of warm relations. Pakistan has again presented itself as a useful partner through mediation between Washington and Tehran, alongside cryptocurrency deals, critical mineral investments, and counterterrorism cooperation. As Pakistan mediates in the Iran-US war, given the difficulties of reaching a truce, there is a constant fear of Pakistani leaders becoming the eventual fall guys. To avert that outcome, Islamabad has been investing significant time and resources to the success of the mediation efforts. The problem is that Pakistan-US relations lack enough independent commercial, institutional, academic, and professional connections to maintain political engagement when the immediate geopolitical transaction ends.
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