Adil Najam
ATP has speculated before that there may be a US-Pakistan ‘falling out of love’ going on right now. The ATP Photo Quiz from this Saturday (15 July, 2006) provides us a nice opportunity to remember the “good ol’ days” and how the two countries fell in love in the first place.
But coming back to the US-Pakistan relations, the relationship is a long-surviving one, but it has been (and remains) a rocky ride. By far the most public, unconditional and affectionate demonstration of this relationship–honeymoon, if you will–was when Pakistan Prime Minister Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan came on a state visit to the US in May 1950. These pictures above show just how much more elaborate that visit was than anything since; in fact, no one visits the US like this anymore.
Nawabzada Liaquat Ali was received at the airport by US President Harry Truman (pictured), spoke to the US House of Representatives (pictured), was given multiple military parades (pictured), got an honorary degree from Columbia University (pictured), a public parade from the city of New York (pictured), both Nawabzada sahib and begum sahiba visited and spoke at multiple universities, including Raana Liaquat Ali speaking at Wellesley College and the Prime Minister meeting the President of MIT, and much more. Indeed, when he arrived at the airport, the Pakistan Prime Minister was greeted by US President Harry Truman, his wife, their daughter Margaret, and most of the US cabinet.
That was the beginning of a long but stormy friendship that never really became what either side wanted it to be. Aah, how times have changed!
Pictures from the website of the Truman Presidential Museum and Library.
[As it turns out this last ATP Photo Quiz was much more difficult than previous ones though, as you will see, one reader (Naveed) did get both people right and a few others guessed at least one of the two people in the picture. Check out the original ATP Photo Quiz to find who those two were!]
These are fascinating pictures. Oh, how things have changed!!!!
Fascinating pictures. I wonder how one woudl compare that trip to Musharraf’s recent trip to US. From these pictures its seems Liaquat Ali’s visit was far more sincere on both sides.