The U.S.-Pakistan relationship has had high points and low points ever since Pakistan came into existence and this is certainly one of the lower points, said Stephen Tankel on C-Span radio. The United States is currently facing a lot of critical questions about the nature of its relationship with Pakistan, how that relationship should change in the future, what type of support the United States is prepared to give, and what the Washington expects from Islamabad in return for that support.
Tankel explained that the trust deficit is high on both sides. This stems primarily from the fact that U.S. and Pakistani strategic interests are not aligned, he argued, and until this lack of strategic alignment can be openly discussed, it will be difficult to move past the trust deficit.