Coming to America

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has reached America on his first state visit representing Pakistan which at present is in a leaderless drift even after four months of the February elections. He is undertaking this visit when the country’s economy is in worst shape to say the least. Inflation, sky rocketing prices of consumers’ goods and up steep charges of electricity, petrol, and gas is making life of the people miserable. America was coasting along very well with Pakistan before February elections, dealing with one person, General Pervez Musharraf in uniform for best part of the time since Secretary of State Colin Powel obtained President Musharraf’s positive response to be a partner in war against terrorism. America eulogised his efforts in fighting the terrorists, handing over to USA over six hundred alleged terrorists including high value targets like Khalid Shaikh or deployment of Pakistani troops along the Afghan border to stem flow of terrorists to and from Afghanistan. Despite criticism of Musharraf by the congress, senate and the media for not doing more, President Bush reposed lot of confidence in “my friend Musharraf.” The Pakistani leader was accorded a red carpet reception each time he visited White House before 2006.A rare honour was lined up for Musharraf when the US president received him at Camp David (2003), a place where only very few of the few American friends are invited. The Pakistani fighting machine was given huge funds (over $7 billion) for equipping it with modern arms and electronic gadgets for surveillance .In addition, about US$3 billion economic aid was also given since 9/11.
The Americans faced a situation of stalemate after the elections as it was not clear with whom they take up matters relating to lack lustre efforts of the Pakistan war on terrorism because confusion prevailed as to who is the final authority in Pakistan. Is it the president, the prime minister or the army’s chief of staff. The coalition partners in Pakistan are barely functioning since PML-N pulled its ministers from the cabinet in May over a dispute on the reinstatement of 60 judges dismissed by the incumbent president on November 3 last year. The American commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, General Dan K McNeill, recently described the government as dysfunctional. The New York Times dated June 24 wrote, “Although the political parties and the military, all seek a breather from the suicide bombings and nascent insurgency that have roiled Pakistan in recent years, there are fundamental disagreements over the problem of militancy that they have not begun to address. The confusion American’s feel is allowing the militants to consolidate their sanctuaries while spreading their tentacles all along the border area. It has also complicated policy for the Bush administration, which leaned heavily on one-man, President Pervez Musharraf, to streamline its antiterrorism efforts in Pakistan. That Pakistan’s government appears broken is not surprising, analysts say.