Islamabad: The India-US relationship is "seemingly about smiles and opportunities", while the Pakistan-India relationship "is about grimaces and perceptions", a leading daily said Tuesday on the concluding day of US President Barack Obama's three-day state visit to India.
"As the US and India bask in the glow of a rejuvenated friendship, a civilian nuclear deal that may finally deliver what it first promised in 2006 and some small-scale military deals, the feeling in certain quarters in Pakistan may be one of acute discomfort," the Dawn said in its editorial.
It said, it does look like India, the world's largest democracy, and the US have more in common economically, diplomatically, and geo-strategically than anything the Pakistan-US relationship has to offer.
"A conflagration in South Asia is fundamentally against American interests, not least as it expands its search for markets in India. In addition, for all the focus on a rising India being a counterweight to China on the eastern side of Asia," the editorial said.
Not only have successive US administrations made it clear that Pakistan is a needed ally in the new century, it is also quite clear that India and Pakistan have their own roles to play in their respective spheres, the newspaper added.
"Closer ties between New Delhi and Washington could mean: instead of the two ganging up on Pakistan on issues of security and Pakistan-based militancy, the incentives really are for the US to use its influence over India to try and push for the resumption of dialogue between New Delhi and Islamabad," the editorial noted.
"However, nothing in the Modi government's approach seems designed to induce those desirable security outcomes. Understanding economics and not security will only leave Prime Minister Modi's India with lopsided vulnerabilities -- meaning, it will eventually realise that there is no option but to talk to Pakistan."
The editorial,however, said that Pakistan certainly needs to do more -- much more -- to placate the outside world about its concerns regarding Pakistan-based militancy.
