ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s relations with the United States have entered an “unexpected resurgence” after years of strain — a shift that has caused unease and concern in India, according to a report by British newspaper The Financial Times.
The newspaper said the shift follows a series of high-level engagements between US President Donald Trump’s administration and Pakistani leadership.
Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir made two visits to the US this summer, including to Florida for the retirement ceremony of US Central Command chief General Michael Kurilla, who has praised Pakistan’s “phenomenal partnership” in counterterrorism.
In June, Field Marshal Munir held a two-hour private lunch with President Trump in Washington, just a month after Pakistan and India fought their deadliest military clash in decades.
The meeting was notable given Trump’s past criticism of Pakistan, The Financial Times noted.
Michael Kugelman, a senior analyst at the Asia Pacific Foundation, told the newspaper the improvement was “remarkable” and marked “a new era” in ties, adding that Pakistan had “very successfully understood how to engage with such an unconventional president”.
The report said Pakistan’s outreach included counterterrorism cooperation, cultivating contacts in Trump’s business network, signing agreements in energy, mineral resources and cryptocurrency, and sending positive signals to the White House.
In March, Pakistan captured and handed over to US authorities a key ISIS-Khorasan terrorist involved in the 2021 Kabul airport bombing.
Trump praised the arrest in his State of the Union address, calling it a “major success” for Pakistan.
In April, a deal was signed between Trump-backed cryptocurrency venture World Liberty Financial and Pakistan’s Crypto Council.
One of the project’s founders, during a visit to Pakistan, highlighted the country’s mineral wealth.
The Financial Times stated that India has been angered by the warming ties, particularly after the US raised tariffs on Indian goods to 50 percent while keeping them at 19 percent for Pakistan.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also rejected Trump’s claim that the US mediated the May ceasefire between India and Pakistan, insisting it was reached through direct military talks.
The newspaper report described Pakistan’s diplomatic approach as a “charm offensive” by senior generals, aimed at winning over Trump and key allies previously critical of Islamabad’s role in Afghanistan.
The US has shown interest in developing what Trump called Pakistan’s “massive oil reserves” alongside other investment opportunities.
According to The Financial Times, the contrasting trajectories of US–Pakistan and US–India relations could have significant geopolitical implications for South Asia.
