New Delhi: A month after nominating Donald Trump for the Nobel Prize, the Pakistan government has conferred one of its highest military honours, the Nishan-e-Imtiaz (Military), on US Central Command chief General Michael Kurilla.
The symbolic gesture comes weeks after the American general praised Islamabad as a “phenomenal partner” in counterterrorism and a day after Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar visited Washington and met US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
“The conferment of this distinguished honour reflects Pakistan’s deep appreciation for General Kurilla’s unwavering support and affirms the growing depth of the bilateral military partnership”, an ISPR (Inter-Services Public Relations) press release read.
The honour, presented Saturday by President Asif Ali Zardari during Gen Kurilla’s visit to Islamabad, reflects Pakistan’s appreciation for the general’s contributions to regional security and joint counterterrorism efforts, Express Tribune reported.
Radio Pakistan, the national public broadcaster, described the honour as a nod to Kurilla’s “outstanding contributions to regional security” and his “dedicated efforts in strengthening strategic defence ties” between the two countries.
Kurilla’s visit was part of the Regional Chiefs of Defence Staff Conference being hosted in Islamabad, which saw senior military leaders from the US, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
Upon his arrival at the Presidential Palace Friday, General Kurilla was welcomed with a Tri-Services Guard of Honour, a gesture typically reserved for top foreign dignitaries. He also held meetings with senior Pakistani officials, including Zardari and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir. Talks centered on regional security dynamics, enhanced military-to-military engagement, and ongoing cooperation in counterterrorism, according to the official statement.
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Growing military ties & Op Sindoor
After years of diplomatic chill, Pakistan has rapidly rebuilt ties with the US under Trump, culminating in a landmark White House visit by Munir in June. Munir became the first Pakistani military leader to hold a one-on-one meeting with the US president, signaling a sharp turnaround from the Biden years, during which relations remained cold.
According to experts, two key moves helped Pakistan win Trump’s favour: its enthusiastic embrace of cryptocurrency, including appointing a Crypto Minister and partnering with World Liberty Financial, a firm linked to the Trump family; and nominating Trump for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize. The nomination reportedly led to Munir’s White House invitation.
Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the trajectory of bilateral ties with the U.S. as “positive,” adding that both sides had agreed to “upscale and strengthen” economic and security cooperation.
Biden had largely distanced himself from Pakistan, refusing to call then-Prime Minister Imran Khan and limiting interactions with his successors. That changed after Trump’s return to office in January. Trump publicly thanked Pakistan for aiding in the arrest of the Abbey Gate bombing mastermind and claimed credit for brokering a ceasefire in Operation Sindoor— a claim India insistently denies.
India had also countered Kurilla’s Pakistan counter-terrorism claims. “This is not a question of narrative, but of record,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement. Citing the April Pahalgam attack, the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, and Pakistan’s past history of keeping Osama bin Laden, the ministry added: “We all know what Pakistan actually is.”
In June, General Kurilla emphasised the importance of maintaining strategic relationships with both India and Pakistan, saying: “I do not believe it is a binary switch that we can’t have one with Pakistan if we have a relationship with India.”
Meanwhile, the State Department’s embrace of Pakistan’s counterterrorism cooperation comes days after Washington designated The Resistance Front (TRF), a Lashkar-e-Taiba proxy, as a foreign terrorist organisation for its role in the Pahalgam attack.
At the Atlantic Council Friday, Dar countered the claim and said that linking TRF to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) is inaccurate. “The entire Lashkar-e-Taiba outfit has been dismantled. I can assure you that TRF has no connection to Lashkar-e-Taiba, which is now defunct. Associating TRF with a non-operational group is simply unfair,” he said.
Pakistan, China & US
However, this revived relationship may come at a cost. Pakistan is in talks with Washington over access to its critical mineral reserves, particularly antimony. This could potentially strain ties with China.
The Rubio-Dar meeting came hours after Munir met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing to discuss regional coordination. Beijing strategically stated that it “prioritises Islamabad in its neighbourhood diplomacy”.
For the US, however, working with Pakistan in this area could help reduce reliance on Chinese resources, a key goal as competition with Beijing continues to grow.
Dar, meanwhile, welcomed the US interest and said a mineral extraction deal with Washington could be finalised within “weeks and days, not months.” “I think we are very close to finalising a deal with the US. It’s not going to be months, not even weeks, I would say (just) days,” he said in a discussion at the Atlantic Council.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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