US should totally isolate Pak: Ex-envoy

The US should adopt a policy of “total isolation” against Pakistan to send a signal that it faces the prospect of becoming a “second North Korea” if it continues destabilising Afghanistan by supporting the Taliban and Haqqani network, a former top American diplomat has said.

“In the aftermath of the US drone attack killing Taliban leader Mullah Mansour, this is the time to increase the pressure by suspending all assistance to Pakistan — military and civilian — and move towards isolating Pakistan internationally, including not supporting IMF renewal of financial support,” Zalmay Khalilzad, a former top American diplomat in the Bush Administration, told PTI.

Mr Khalilzad, who played a key role in America’s policy towards Afghanistan and Pakistan and Iraq after 9/11 terror attack, said the US should adopt a policy of “total isolation” against Pakistan.

Such a policy, he argued would send a signal to Pakistan that it faces the prospect of becoming a “second North Korea” unless it changes its course on Afghanistan.

Mr Khalilzad was the highest ranking Muslim American in the history of the United States. He was the US ambassador to the United Nations under President George W Bush. He also served as the US ambassador to Afgha-nistan and headed the country’s diplomatic mission in Iraq.

“If Pakistan truly changes course, then the US should be willing to be supportive in a significant way. But we have to substantially escalate the cost of Pakistan’s hostile policy in Afghanistan,” he said. Mr Khalilzad also called for retaining the current level of forces in Afghanistan and more flexible rules of engagement for US forces until the next President reviews the situation in Afghanistan and decides on a new policy.

“While there are some potential risks in isolating Pakistan, there are real risks with continuing the current course in Afghanistan and Pakistan,” he said and called for having a contingency plan to deal with the nuclear scenario risks.

“In fact (US forces) being in Afghanistan would help in addressing such challenges promptly,” he said.

A top US Congressman has also opposed the decision of the House of Representatives to increase American aid to Pakistan from $700 million to $900 million alleging that Pakistan continues to support terror groups that target US troops in Afghanistan.

“Pakistan cannot be trusted. It has played us now for a total of $33 billion of our money since 2001,” Republican Congressman Ted Poe, chairman of the Subcommittee on Terrorism, Non-Proliferation and Trade of the house foreign affairs committee wrote on Tuesday in an op-ed in US News.