In India, there has been extensive debate about China’s growing role in South Asia, particularly its strategic partnership with Pakistan, which continues to challenge India’s foreign policy outlook. Since the Partition, Pakistan’s military establishment has defined its security posture primarily around India. To counter its relative weaknesses, the Pakistani army sought to balance India by tightening its grip over domestic politics and cultivating foreign alliances, first with the U.S. during the Cold War and increasingly with China in recent years. As India deepens its partnership with Washington, the U.S.–Pakistan relationship has lost its appeal for Indian strategists; however, recent events have again made it a topic of interest.

Trump’s shifting stance

On April 2025, Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, delivered a provocative speech invoking the two-nation theory just days before the Pahalgam terrorist attack in India. His remarks drew immediate condemnation in New Delhi. Yet, in the months that followed, Mr. Munir emerged as a surprisingly frequent visitor to Washington. He first visited the U.S. in June 2025 for a White House lunch with President Donald Trump, then again in August for high-level military meetings, and went back again in September with Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for a White House meeting.