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The Biden administration says that they need military ties with Pakistan and they have their explanations.

But, as we know the Trump administration was already negotiating with Afghan Talibnas without maintaining close military ties with Pakistan. the Trump administration blocked military aid, the supply of 16 Bell AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters, etc.

What statements have been made by the Biden administration to indicate why it is interested in mending military ties with Pakistan when the Trump admin was doing fine without it?

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  • Close-Voter... changed body question to ask about statements made, instead of motivations.
    – CGCampbell
    Commented Feb 3, 2021 at 16:59

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Biden has also announced possibly delaying troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, interpreted as a tougher stance on the Taliban who haven't exactly honored all their commitments under the peace plan. So the new US administration may have calculated that they'd need more Pakistani support to put pressure on the Taliban this way too. (I'm not saying this is the only reason for more cooperation with Pakistan, but it's probably one of them.)

Pakistan's government has not been exactly happy with the perspective of a delayed US withdrawal from Afghanistan, so it may simply be that the US is trying to mollify Pakistan with renewed military cooperation.

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According to the South China Post, in an article written by journalist Gulshan Rafiq, Pakistan is looking for a positive change under Biden's administration and to address it's concerns on regional instability.

They are concerned with the US ties with Modi's India, which were built up during Trump's administration, believing that US South Asia policies favour India.

Whilst, Amina Khan, director of The Centre for Middle East and Africa based at the Institute of Strategic Studies has been quoted in an article published in Xinhuanet by journalist Mohammed Tahir as saying:

A lot will depend upon how the intra-Afghan talks play out amd whether the Taliban will move towards a reduction of violence amd ultimately move towards a ceasefire.

Why is the Biden administration interested in mending military ties with Pakistan?

Washington considers Pakistan a major non-NATO ally, only sixteen other countries are considered such. That's not likely to change any time soon. Given Trumps tilt towards Modi's India, it's only natural for Biden to signal a break with Trump's foreign policy by tilting towards Pakistan. Plus this help restabilise relations in the area, concerns that were cited by observers of that particular foreign policy area.

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  • This answer is useless. Pakistani point of view is not important in my question.
    – user366312
    Commented Feb 3, 2021 at 10:33
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    @user366312: I think the Pakistani viewpoint is important when it comes to establishing bilateral relations with Pakistan.
    – Mozibur Ullah
    Commented Feb 3, 2021 at 12:40
  • @user366312: Which you'd find out if you were ever involved in diplomacy ...
    – Mozibur Ullah
    Commented Feb 3, 2021 at 12:48
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    @user366312: Given's Trump's 'love in' with Modi, if I was Pakistani, I'd certainly be concerned. And given that the new administration is certainly not a continuation of Trump's regime, I would have suggested a tilt towards Pakistan to represent a clean break with Trumps administration, no matter how it's dressed up.
    – Mozibur Ullah
    Commented Feb 3, 2021 at 12:52
  • @CGCampbell: If you look at the preceding comment by me above yours, you will see that this is exactly what I meant. I've fixed the typo. These things happen after a long day kicking about on this site.
    – Mozibur Ullah
    Commented Feb 3, 2021 at 17:12

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