U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price in Washington, D.C., on July 14. Photo by Freddie Everett; Courtesy State Department
The U.S. State Department on Wednesday stressed that Islamabad remains an important partner of Washington in “a number of respects,” adding that an ongoing military training program will further strengthen cooperation between the two states.
Responding to a question on the state of security cooperation between Pakistan and the U.S. during a regular press briefing, spokesman Ned Price emphasized that Washington valued its bilateral relationship with Islamabad. “We welcome opportunities to expand cooperation in areas that are of mutual interest to us and to Pakistan. That, of course, does include when it comes to counterterrorism,” he said, adding that Pakistan received grant assistance from the International Military Education and Training program.
“This program provides professional military education, operational and technical courses that in turn strengthens Pakistan’s own abilities to take on the threats—whether it’s counterinsurgency, counterterrorism—as well as skills courses that improve institutional capacity and resource management. The program continues to enhance the bilateral relationship. It continues to strengthen military cooperation between our two countries,” he added.
To another question on Pakistan’s appointment of Asad Majeed—formerly Pakistan’s ambassador to the U.S.—as its foreign secretary after being implicated in the debunked “foreign regime change conspiracy,” Price reiterated America’s refuting of these “false and scurrilous” claims. “Our only interest is in the interest of the Pakistani people and Pakistan’s constitutional system. We don’t favor any one candidate or any one personality over another. What we favor is Pakistan’s constitutional system,” he added.
Afghanistan
Responding to a question on the interim government of Afghanistan reviving public executions, the State Department spokesman said it indicated that the Taliban were seeking a return to their regressive and abusive practices of the 1990s. “It was an affront to the dignity and the human rights of all Afghans then; it would be an affront to the dignity and the human rights of all Afghans now. It is a clear failure by the Taliban to uphold their promises,” he said, noting that this had already been rejected by Afghans.
“As we’ve said both publicly but also in our private engagements with the Taliban, their relationship with us, with the international community depends entirely on their own actions,” he said, emphasizing human rights, especially the rights of women, girls, minorities, and other marginalized communities.
To a question on whether the U.S. was willing to accept it had erred in believing the Taliban wanted a better relationship with the world, Price said there was no denying that the Taliban were continuing to seek relations with other countries. “This is a country that has been able to subsist for decades now with a hefty dose of international aid, development assistance, humanitarian assistance. The people of Afghanistan—and Afghanistan itself would not and will not—be in a position to have prosperity, stability without continued international assistance,” he said, adding that the Taliban were aware that they could not achieve any stability without relationships with countries outside of Afghanistan—“whether they like it or not.”
Stressing that the U.S. was consistently conveying to the Taliban’s conduct would determine their relations with other states, the spokesman said it would depend entirely on their actions aligning with the U.S.’s national interest. “Human rights is a core interest of ours; the rights of women and girls, it’s a core interest of ours. Safe passage, counterterrorism, the Taliban’s ability or willingness to form of government that is representative of their people—we are looking to all of these things and will continue to do that as we chart our own potential engagement,” he said.
Acknowledging that the Taliban had demonstrated to date that they were “unwilling or unable” to live up to their commitments, Price said they would eventually be held accountable. “We will continue to support the people of Afghanistan—again, circumventing the Taliban—with our humanitarian assistance,” he added.
On the surge of terrorism in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan, Price warned that the U.S. had counterterrorism capabilities in the region that did not leave it beholden to the Taliban. “We demonstrated those capabilities in recent months with the killing of the now-deceased Al Qaeda emir, Ayman al-Zawahiri, making good on the pledge that you have consistently heard from President Biden since the withdrawal of military forces from Afghanistan last year, that we will take action if we see international terrorists regrouping in Afghanistan. We will take action in a way that protects our interests,” he said, adding that the broader goal remained preventing terrorists from using Afghanistan as a launch pad for attacks on Pakistan. “We are determined to work with our partners in the region, including Pakistan, to do what we can to take on the threat of terrorism in the region, and certainly the threat of terrorism that extends well beyond the region,” he added.