WASHINGTON, Jan 22: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz will have no set agenda when he meets President George W. Bush at the White House but two recent developments are likely to figure prominently in the talks: a US missile raid in Bajaur and Washington’s move to finalise a nuclear deal with India.

“The Indo-US nuclear deal is not part of the official programme but is likely to come up when they discuss India-Pakistan relations and the balance of power in South Asia,” ambassador Jehangir Karamat told Dawn.

Mr Karamat said that the need for civilian nuclear cooperation could also be raised during talks on South Asia’s energy requirements. “Like India, Pakistan too has energy needs and “these needs should be fulfilled,” he said. On the issue of the drone attack in Bajaur, recent reports in the US media acknowledged that the failed US attempt to target Al Qaeda’s No 2 and the consequent death of 18 civilians has created new tensions in bilateral relations which have otherwise been good since Pakistan joined the US-led war on terrorism.

The Voice of America radio, which represents the views of the US government on foreign policy issues, says that the appearance of a new Osama bin Laden audiotape just after Mr Aziz’s arrival in the US was not a good omen either.

“Analysts say that in light of the tape the Bush Administration may ratchet up pressure on President Pervez Musharraf and his government to do even more to clear the Pakistani border areas of Al Qaeda and Taliban fighters,” notes VOA staff writer Gary Thomas.

The article quotes Larry Goodson of the US Army War College, as saying that Mr Musharraf has been caught in a dilemma ever since the terrorist strikes on the United States on Sept 11, 2001. “President Musharraf’s cooperation with American anti-terrorist efforts has spawned opposition at home, where there is sympathy among the population for both Osama and the Taliban, which ruled neighbouring Afghanistan until 2001.”

Other US media outlets noted that there were a slew of anti-US protests across Pakistan after the attack last Friday by an unmanned US drone at a village in Bajaur.

One commentator pointed out that Mr Aziz also reflected some of those sentiments in comments in New York this week. He told reporters there was a ‘communications gap’ between the two nations and that the incident last week was ‘regrettable.’

“Our war against terror is based on principles, so if our objectives are similar, I think we can work together,” said Mr Aziz. “However the modus operandi and the code of conduct need to be discussed and while I’m in Washington, we will certainly talk about it.”