"The US remains a strategic market for Pakistan and that is not going away any time soon. So there will be a relationship there," says Younus, with the caveat that Washington is likely to prioritize its strategic interests elsewhere for the time being.
Or may be the Russia-Pakistan oil deal won't matter that much to the US and its Gulf buddies. For Tamanna Salikuddin, director of South Asia programs at the US Institute of Peace, was quoted by Gzeromedia as saying that although the deal will be watched with much interest in Washington, it is going to reinforce the views of American policymakers who already believe that Pakistan is on the Chinese side versus the US camp.
"That Pakistan is now on the 'China-Russia side' versus the 'US-India side' will be further evident," she explains. "Even if we're not trying to create political blocs, they emerge sometimes without any effort on our part."
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