ISLAMABAD: The victory of Joe Biden may prove to be slightly better for Pakistan as he is likely to reconsider US policy towards China which will ultimately benefit Pakistan. This was the consensus of diplomats and commentators on the eve of US presidential elections to be held today, while talking to this correspondent.
Diplomatic sources stated that the US is in a withdrawal mode from Afghanistan with Pakistan's role more crucial with various Afghan groups, including the Taliban, engaged in peace talks to determine the future set up in Afghanistan.
"Whoever is in the White House, we will have to see to our own interests... Nations build their relations based on mutual interest and respect, and we should expect the same overarching objective from a US administration," a senior diplomat said when asked by Business Recorder to comment on which candidate will be better for Pakistan - Donald Trump or Joe Biden.
According to former ambassador and executive director of Center for International Strategic Studies (CISS) Ali Sarwar Naqvi, "Democrats have traditionally not favoured Pakistan though our expectations attached with Trump remained unmet particularly with regard to the Kashmir issue."
He however categorically stated that whoever wins the elections, US policy towards India is unlikely to change adding that the strategic partnership between Washington and New Delhi will continue given the China factor.
"As far as Pakistan's interests are concerned, we have to wait and see. Individuals have a limited impact on their country's foreign policies though Trump in his first term aggressively pursued his agenda which angered many in the US establishment as well as other countries such as shifting of the US Embassy to Jerusalem, withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal, the Paris Agreement as well as engaging in trade wars including with China," he added.
Lt-Gen Talat Masood (retd), a senior analyst concurred stating that irrespective of who wins the elections US relations with Pakistan are unlikely to undergo any dramatic change though a Biden presidency may reconsider US policy towards China, which will ultimately benefit Pakistan in the context of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), and the nuclear deal with Iran may be reactivated with some modifications.
He said Trump in his first term remained critical of the growing role of China in Pakistan under CPEC as well as the overall Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), adding that "it will be interesting to see whether a Democrat, Biden, will have a different policy as far as the growing global role of China is concerned in general and CPEC in particular."
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020