A report by a dozen US think-tanks and universities advises the Trump administration to state that it plans to review the intelligence on Pakistani involvement in supporting terror much more critically than its predecessors.
Scholars and experts from Asian Studies Centre, The Heritage Foundation; Georgetown University; National Defence University; New America; Hudson Institute; Brookings Institution; Centre for Strategic and International Studies and the Middle East Institute jointly compiled this report that includes recommendations for the Trump administration, which took oath on Jan. 20 and has not yet spelled out its Pakistan policy.
The report argues that US engagement with Pakistan must be based on a realistic appraisal of the country’s policies, aspirations, and worldview.
The group acknowledges that there is no silver bullet to change decades of Pakistani policy, but a tougher stance could persuade Pakistan to cooperate with the United States.
It further urges Trump administration to “avoid viewing and portraying Pakistan as an ally and to deal with it as a non-ally, which has engaged in supporting the Afghan Taliban.”
Advising the new administration on how to deal with Pakistan, they argue: “As a first step, the US must warn Pakistan that its status as a Major Non-Nato Ally is in serious jeopardy. Unless Pakistan takes immediate steps to demonstrate that it fully shares US counter-terrorism objectives, the US will revoke (this) status within six months.”
At the same time, the administration should maintain the option for Pakistan to be an ally of the United States in the future, the report states.
And if Pakistan behaves, as desired, it should be offered “a package of trade and investment cooperation” as “a key building block” of a new alliance.
The report also wants the administration to “prioritise engagement with Pakistan’s civilian leaders,” nothing that the Pakistani civilian government under Prime Minister Sharif is trying to correct the country’s direction.
Trump administration was also asked to work with China and Gulf Arab states to persuade Pakistan to stop tolerating terrorist groups and individuals.
“The US must lead efforts, including at multilateral forums, to sanction Pakistani terrorist groups and individuals. In particular, Washington must seek to work more closely with China, which shares concerns about the presence of terrorist groups in the region and the threat they pose to the proposed China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC),” the report states.
