April 03, 2007	Tuesday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 14, 1428

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ISLAMABAD, April 2: Political analysts at a seminar here on Monday advised the United States to keep the ground realities in the wider region in mind while reframing its policies towards South Asia.

A press release of the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), which organised the seminar, quoted Lt Gen (retd) Talat Masud as saying that a change in US policies towards Pakistan was “undoubtedly on the way” since the Democrats won political dominance in Washington.

This change was influenced by the growing worries in the US that developments in Afghanistan and Iraq were not going its way. Pakistan was being seen there as part of the problem and at the same time as part of solution.

There were many areas of friction between the two countries which spell trouble not only in their state relations but also in their internal politics.

However he thought Pakistan’s “critical role” in Asia and the Middle East would remain important for the US which fears Pakistan loosing war on terror and any setback to the process of democratisation in the country.

Pakistan should develop its own institutions and strengths and hold free and fair elections to gain stability and a place in international politics, the retired general said.

Moeed Yousaf of SDPI told the seminar that despite his capitulation to US demands following the 9/11 event, external and internal problems of Pakistan would not allow Musharraf regime to act upon “the unrealistic desires of the US administration to do more”.

“An overnight change in policy cannot change the structural abnormalities and ground situation of the region, which will take a long time,” he said.

“Washington must realise the fact that much of the solution of Afghan problem lies within Afghanistan,” he maintained.

Excessive US demands might even push President Musharraf to take an anti-US line at home with the risk that the US cut off its economic and military assistance to Pakistan, according to the SDPI expert.

Mr Yousaf said that the issues of democracy and nuclear proliferation and Dr A.Q. Khan, Pakistan’s quest to maintain parity with India, Sino-Pak relations and Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan will continue to pose challenges to Pakistan-US relations.