George W. Bush’s overnight stay in Islamabad

Background

Bush's South Asia trip in March 2006 was built around India. In New Delhi on 2 March he and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced agreement on the separation of India's civil and military nuclear facilities, the key step in a civil nuclear cooperation deal. Pakistan had asked for comparable treatment and was told its circumstances, including the A. Q. Khan affair, were different.

What happened

Bush flew into Islamabad late on 3 March, with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, under exceptional security: the aircraft landed after dark at a military air base, and a suicide car bombing near the US consulate in Karachi on 2 March had killed an American diplomat, David Foy, and at least three others^3,6. It was the first visit to Pakistan by a US president since Bill Clinton's brief stop in March 2000³.

On 4 March the two presidents held talks and issued a Joint Statement on United States–Pakistan Strategic Partnership. It affirmed a long-term strategic partnership; recalled the 2004 major non-NATO ally designation; committed both sides to a significant expansion of trade and investment, including progress towards a bilateral investment treaty; pledged to work with Afghanistan to make the two countries a land bridge between South and Central Asia; and reaffirmed cooperation against terrorism, for which Bush thanked Musharraf^1,5. The statement also launched a regular strategic dialogue. Bush met representatives of Pakistani civil society at the US Embassy and attended a state dinner, and he spoke publicly about the importance of free and fair elections in 2007⁴.

Why it mattered

The visit confirmed the closeness of the Bush–Musharraf relationship while making clear its limits. The contrast with the India deal - a strategic, long-term bet on New Delhi beside a security-centred partnership with Islamabad - was noted in Pakistan, where officials argued for a criteria-based approach to civil nuclear cooperation rather than country-specific exceptions.

Legacy

The strategic dialogue launched in 2006 was upgraded to ministerial level in 2010. Pakistan has continued to seek civil nuclear cooperation and membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group on terms comparable with India's.