{"id":29234,"date":"2026-02-13T04:51:49","date_gmt":"2026-02-13T04:51:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/?p=29234"},"modified":"2026-02-13T04:51:52","modified_gmt":"2026-02-13T04:51:52","slug":"pakistan-key-us-partner-in-region-official-tells-congress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/?p=29234","title":{"rendered":"Pakistan key US partner in region, official tells Congress"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Trump administration\u2019s point man for South and Central Asia has told Congress that Pakistan remains an important US partner in the region, with Washington seeking to expand trade, economic cooperation, and\u00a0security ties<\/a>\u00a0with the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Addressing the House Foreign Affairs Committee\u2019s Sub-committee on South and Central Asia on Wednesday, Assistant Secretary of State Paul Kapur underscored Pakistan\u2019s role in regional engagement and highlighted growing bilateral cooperation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPakistan is another important partner in the region. We are working together with Pakistan to realise the potential of its\u00a0critical mineral resources<\/a>. Combining\u00a0US government seed financing with private sector know-how would benefit both of our countries,\u201d he told the sub-committee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Referring to broader economic engagement, Kapur said: \u201cOur trade in energy and agriculture is expanding as well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He also pointed to continued security cooperation between the two countries, adding: \u201cAnd our ongoing counter-terrorism cooperation helps Pakistan combat internal security threats while addressing transnational dangers that can harm the US or our partners.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the subsequent question-and-answer session, lawmakers raised issues related to militancy, Pakistan\u2019s past security strategy and broader regional dynamics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Referring to Kapur\u2019s academic work, a congressman noted that his book examined militancy and national security in Pakistan and asked whether militant groups based in South and Central Asia were operating in the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kapur said the purpose of his book had been to examine Pakistani strategy and how the Pakistani state had interacted with militant and terrorist groups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked whether this meant that South and Central Asian militant groups were importing Sharia into the United States, Kapur said that as coherent or organised entities, such groups were not known to be operating in the country. He cautioned, however, that individual members could be present anywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The assistant secretary of state added that one of the challenges in dealing with terrorism was that small numbers of individuals could blend into the general population, making their presence difficult to detect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The hearing then turned to India\u2019s role in the US strategy toward China. Asked how India was likely to support US efforts to counter what was described as an increasingly aggressive China, Kapur said an India that was able to develop independently, stand on its own and preserve its freedom of action served US strategic interests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said the broader objective was to prevent China, or any single hegemonic power, from dominating the region or imposing leverage over it. An independent India, he said, reduced China\u2019s ability to become a dominant power across the Indo-Pacific.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Responding to a question on China\u2019s Belt and Road Initiative, Kapur said India\u2019s economic development, infrastructure growth and independent military development constrained Beijing\u2019s ability to expand its influence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the hearing, lawmakers from both parties underscored the stakes of US engagement in South Asia. House Foreign Affairs Sub-committee on South and Central Asia Chairman Bill Huizenga said Washington\u2019s approach must be broad-based and values-driven. \u201cOur strategy in South Asia must be comprehensive, anchored in strong partnerships, economic engagement, and a commitment to democratic values,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Democratic concerns focused on recent regional crises and the direction of US diplomacy. Congresswoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove (CA-37), the ranking member of the sub-committee, recalled that India and Pakistan \u201cfought their most serious military conflict in decades\u201d in May, warning that the confrontation risked nuclear escalation in a region home to nearly two billion people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said the episode should have reinforced \u201cthe indispensable role of US diplomacy,\u201d but argued that this was eclipsed by President Trump\u2019s insistence on taking credit<\/a> for the cease-fire and his offer to mediate the Kashmir dispute.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kamlager-Dove also voiced alarm over Afghanistan, saying she feared it was \u201conly a matter of time\u201d before the administration moves toward recognising the Taliban without securing meaningful improvements in the rights of Afghan women and girls\u2014an outcome she described as unconscionable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Testifying before the panel, Kapur said the US has begun offering financial assistance to Afghans to return home as it works to close a long-standing camp in Qatar. More than 1,100 people have been held at the former US Army base Camp As Sayliyah (CAS) since early 2025, when the Trump administration halted resettlement for Afghans fearing Taliban reprisals for their ties to US forces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are not forcibly repatriating Afghans to Afghanistan. Some have gone of their own volition, but we\u2019re not forcing anybody,\u201d Kapur said, noting that roughly 150 had accepted the payments, though their status after returning was unknown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reference Link:- https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1972690<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Trump administration\u2019s point man for South and Central Asia has told Congress that Pakistan remains an important US partner in the region, with Washington seeking to expand trade, economic cooperation, and\u00a0security ties\u00a0with the country. Addressing the House Foreign Affairs Committee\u2019s Sub-committee on South and Central Asia on Wednesday, Assistant Secretary of State Paul Kapur […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":29235,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"aside","meta":{"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2],"tags":[512,26923,483,26924,26925,26926,349,25007],"class_list":["post-29234","post","type-post","status-publish","format-aside","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sample-category","tag-america-2","tag-close-ally","tag-pakistan-2","tag-partner-2","tag-regional-partner","tag-south-central-asia","tag-us-2","tag-us-congress","post_format-post-format-aside"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29234","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=29234"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29234\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29236,"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29234\/revisions\/29236"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/29235"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=29234"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=29234"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=29234"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}