Politics World Business Culture Science Media & Tech Millennials U.S.-Pakistan Relationship: Maybe It's Time to Break Up

Oh to be a fly on the wall when President Obama and Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani met this week in Seoul. And you thought the recent Netanyahu meeting was awkward.
It may be too flippant to liken the U.S.-Pakistani relationship to a broken record, considering U.S. national security is at stake, but the problem at the heart of this screwed up alliance is what it has always been: distrust.
For the Pakistanis, it is the perception of a continued U.S. assault on their sovereignty, whether it is through frequent drone strikes or direct incursion (think bin Laden). For the U.S., it is the perception of Pakistan as the epicenter of extremism, whether it is by backing a variety of radical groups or harboring militants who wish the U.S. harm (think bin Laden). Given the current unhealthy trajectory of the Afghan war, it would seem imperative that the U.S.-Pakistani relationship be salvaged immediately.
The Obama administration offered this week to drastically reduce the number of drone strikes against Pakistani militants operating in the tribal areas along the Afghan border. The C.I.A. even offered to give Pakistani security officials advance notice of impending strikes, despite the fact that in past instances, the Pakistanis have subsequently notified tribal elders, who then warn the targeted militants before a strike occurs. These concessions still appear insufficient to Pakistani policymakers, who are presently considering a parliamentary committee recommendation calling for a complete cessation of drone strikes.