Pakistan is seeking to convert the diplomatic gains it made through its mediation in the Iran war into broader security cooperation and American investments in the minerals sector, through a $1.2 million lobbying contract in Washington, according to an official document.

The two-year contract was deposited in an official, publicly accessible database and took effect in May. It covers a period that officials and experts consider crucial for converting the goodwill Pakistan has earned with the Donald Trump administration into tangible gains in bilateral relations.

But Islamabad may face a tough task. Former Pakistani ambassador to Washington, Maleeha Lodhi, said: 'It is impossible to determine how long this marked improvement in relations will last, given their volatile nature.'

She added: 'The question also remains: will this improvement continue after Donald Trump's term ends?', according to Agence France-Presse.

The contract tasks the Capitol-based firm Irvine Graves Strategy with communicating with the US Congress and government, and facilitating meetings, including with officials from the Pentagon and the National Security Council.

Boosting Presence

This contract is an extension of a short-term agreement between the Pakistani embassy in Washington and the firm in October, but the new arrangement doubles the monthly payment to $50,000.

The Pakistani Foreign Ministry did not respond to AFP's request for comment on the contract.

A State Department spokesperson said the two countries 'continue to identify areas of cooperation that benefit both our countries in terms of trade and certain security priorities.'

Governments typically hire lobbying firms to strengthen their presence in Washington's decision-making circles.

Pakistan's latest contract, disclosed under the US Foreign Agents Registration Act, provides direct insight into Islamabad's strategic priorities.

The agreement frames efforts to revive defense cooperation mechanisms that existed during the Afghanistan war and attract investments into the minerals sector, currently dominated by China.

Former US diplomat in Pakistan and head of the Stimson Center's South Asia program, Elizabeth Threlkeld, said: 'The contract highlights aspects of the relationship that align with the Trump administration's priorities, including critical minerals and counterterrorism.'

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Security Perspective

Elizabeth Threlkeld explained that the text also shows 'interest in engaging with Congress to broaden the support base for the partnership.'

It includes instructions to emphasize 'threats arising from Afghanistan' and 'encourage continued US support for Pakistan's counterterrorism efforts,' at a time when Islamabad is conducting strikes on its neighbor in response to militant violence.

The Afghan Taliban government denies Kabul's involvement in any armed violence in Pakistan.

The relationship between Pakistani army chief Asim Munir and Trump has strengthened Islamabad's presence in a bilateral relationship that has long focused on security.

The US president describes Munir as his 'favorite field commander,' after they became acquainted following a dispute with India that Trump made mediation efforts to resolve last year.

A knowledgeable source said the assistance Pakistan provided in the US-Iran negotiations that led to the memorandum of understanding last June provided a timely opportunity for that.

A source who requested anonymity confirmed: 'We seek to move relations beyond the personal level and make them institutional to ensure their continuity despite changes in governments.'

Cooling

Overall, Islamabad's relations with Washington have cooled since the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, after a 20-year war that shaped much of the nature of that relationship.

Pakistan has tasked Irvine Graves with working on 'resuming... appropriate high-level bilateral dialogue mechanisms in defense and security.'

According to the contract, this could take the form of reactivating the Defense Consultative Group, the forum that supported US-Pakistan cooperation during the Afghanistan war.

Fellow at the Atlantic Council research center and author of 'Pakistan's Battle: Bitter American Friendship and Tense Neighborhood,' Shuja Nawaz, said the Defense Consultative Group 'gradually declined as security assistance to Pakistan decreased.'

At the height of this partnership, Pakistan received billions of dollars in US funding, while Washington relied on it for securing military supply lines and counterterrorism cooperation.

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Setback

However, this relationship suffered a setback in 2011, when US forces found Osama bin Laden, the mastermind of the September 11 attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people, during a raid on a compound in Pakistan.

Nawaz said: 'Today, there is no direct US assistance worth mentioning.'

A Pakistani security source told AFP that defense relations continue.

The source added: 'Despite fluctuations in the scope and intensity of cooperation, security cooperation has rarely been interrupted,' stressing that intelligence cooperation last year led to the arrest of an ISIS member suspected of involvement in the deadly 2021 attack on Kabul airport.

Investment and Minerals

A section of the lobbying contract is dedicated to the minerals sector, a global strategic priority for the Trump administration, as it directs the partnership to 'support efforts to identify opportunities for cooperation.'

Irvine Graves is required to provide recommendations on Pakistan's investment policies and strategies, and identify potential investors, according to the contract.

This could enhance US interest in the mining sector in the vast southwestern province of Balochistan, which holds one of the world's largest untapped copper reserves, a metal in increasing demand for building AI data centers.

In December, Washington pledged $1.25 billion to the Reko Diq copper and gold mine in Balochistan. But Balochistan, the least developed province in Pakistan, is witnessing a growing separatist insurgency that has also targeted Chinese mining investments.

Nawaz noted that US-Pakistan relations need to address these challenges to move beyond reliance on goodwill that may be fleeting between the two countries' leaders.

He added: 'Pakistan needs to reform its internal situation to strengthen its economy and make it a more attractive destination for foreign investment. Then the United States will take greater interest in it.'