He insisted that future engagements should be transparent and well documented.
Pakistani-US relations have been in freefall following a US-led raid on Pakistani soil in November that left 24 soldiers dead. Pakistan has shut vital supply routes for NATO soldiers in Afghanistan ever since.
The Western military alliance has expressed hope for a quick re-opening of the border, arguing that the blockade is damaging the economies of both Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Press TV talks with Sultan M. Hali, a senior retired officer of the Pakistani Air Force, to share his thoughts on the issue. What follows is the transcription of the interview:
Press TV: Where is this dwindling relationship headed to, in your opinion, between the US and Pakistan?
Hali: In my opinion, the relationship has already reached the lowest end and it can't go anywhere. But the important thing is that the people in Pakistan and especially the government, the military and their allies, it has been a one sided relationship; therefore, they need to review it.
And as you just mentioned, the incident on the 26th of November in which the NATO forces killed 24 of Pakistani soldiers, the relationship has suffered a major blow.
Only the other day the American Congress also voted for not releasing 700 million dollars of US funds. The coalition support fund which is due to Pakistan has also been little. So I don't think it could get anywhere.
Press TV: A Senior Pakistani officials has said, “a parliamentary committee is discussing the kind of relationship that Islamabad should have with Washington in the future.” What do they mean by that?
Hali: What they mean is that you see a number of things were taken for granted by the US especially it was said that there was an [approval] by the government regarding the drone attacks which were being allowed for the CIA to launch targets against the enemy in the Pakistani territories.
But it has appeared that there was nothing in black and white. And there were a number of other incidents in which CIA agents were being placed in Pakistan without any formal agreement. So all these things need to be revisited.
And let me tell you or share with you that I was in Bonn last month...at the NATO headquarters where I had the opportunity to meet the Secretary General of NATO as well as the US Secretary of State. And I asked them the question of Pakistan's closure of the NATO supply route, how is it affecting them? And the NATO Secretary General was candid and he said, yes, it's going to hurt us in the near future but we are going to ask Pakistan to release some of the important elements like fuel.
But Pakistan, at the moment, is not in any mood unless the parliamentary committee reviews its relations with the West.
Then I asked the US Secretary General about why the US government has not apologized to Pakistan for the attack on the check post in Pakistan which killed 24 soldiers? And she said that Pakistan should stop nurturing groups like the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi which, according to her, carried out an attack in Kabul on the Muharram congregation.
