U.S. Role in Pak-Afghan Relations: 1973-1978

Research Article

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to evaluate Pak-Afghan relations during President Sardar Daoud’s era (1973-1978) and the nature of U.S. relations with Afghanistan and its role in the development of fluctuating interactions between Pakistan and Afghanistan. This era is known as a detente period in the Cold War, though, both the rivals, U.S. and the former Soviet Union, were struggling to gain world domination. Geographically, Afghanistan was important for  the neighboring superpower; therefore, the former Soviet Union was deeply involved in the affairs of Afghanistan, when Sardar Daoud staged a coup against his cousin, King Zahir Shah in July 1973. This development was alarming for the U.S. generally and Islamabad particularly that paved the way for their interference in Afghanistan just to halt the security threats animating from there. Thus, this article discusses the main irritants of Pak-Afghan relations and its causes. Furthermore, it assesses the policy clash between Pakistan and Afghanistan in the first three years of Daoud’s tenure and explains how both countries came close to each other. However, it concludes by arguing that the U.S. had a minimal role in that period; however, it was important in the sense that it laid the foundation of the massive involvement of the U.S. in the later years in Afghanistan.