Background
- Post-9/11 (2001): Pakistan under Musharraf joined US-led "War on Terror" as frontline ally
- Abandoned Taliban support, allowed US use of airspace/bases for Afghanistan operations
Role & Contributions
- Major logistics hub — NATO/ISAF supply lines through Pakistan (Torkham, Chaman)
- Military operations against militants: South Waziristan, Swat (2009), North Waziristan (Zarb-e-Azb, 2014)
- Intelligence cooperation — capture of high-profile al-Qaeda figures (e.g., Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, 2003)
Costs to Pakistan
- Massive human cost: tens of thousands of civilian & military casualties
- Economic losses estimated over $100+ billion (infrastructure, investment, tourism)
- Internal displacement (IDPs) from tribal areas due to military operations
- Rise of TTP as blowback — Pakistan itself became a major terrorism target (APS Peshawar attack, 2014 — turning point)
Strains in US-Pakistan Relationship
- Osama bin Laden found & killed in Abbottabad (May 2011) — major trust breakdown, sovereignty violation row
- US accusations of Pakistan providing safe havens to Haqqani Network — Coalition Support Fund suspensions
- Drone strikes in FATA — major sovereignty & civilian casualty controversy
Post-2021 Context
- US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan (Aug 2021), Taliban return to power
- Pakistan's role/leverage with Washington diminished; relationship increasingly transactional
Exam angle