Deteriorating Pak-US relations

In his post-Osama interview with Time magazine, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani talked of a deteriorating Pak-US relationship that manifested itself on both the people's and the government level, as he explained it, because of trust-deficit shown by the other side. The interview took place at a time when some American legislators were pointing accusatory fingers at Pakistan and threatening an aid cut-off.
For a change, Gilani's assertions seemed to imply that Washington should not take this country for granted. He reminded the US of increasing anti-Americanism in society that is making it difficult for his government to continue its co-operation, suggesting "they should do something for the public which would persuade them that the US is supportive of Pakistan." In the same vein he referred to the 2008 Civil Nuclear deal between the US and India to aver "it's our public that's dying, but the deal is happening there."
The embarrassment the US operation to kill Osama caused, the government and the military may be the immediate reason behind the Prime Minister's tough stance, but there are other important issues of discord, such as the drone strikes and the ongoing fight against terrorism as it relates to Afghanistan exit strategy. For quite sometime, the government has been taking flak from the public for what is believed to be a tacit understanding with the US to allow drone attacks, which have killed hundreds of innocent people.
The frequency of the attacks and the resultant 'collateral damage' have increased exponentially. During his last month's meeting with his American counterpart, ISI chief Shuja Pasha had raised the issue, asking for scaling back of drone strikes, but to no avail. The Prime Minister has now said that the drone strategy needs to be reviewed, and that if they are effective, "then drones should operate under our supervision."
This is important for two reasons: First, Americans, of course, care little for the lives of people other than fellow Americans. When Pakistanis are involved they will be more careful to avoid 'collateral' damage. Second, human intelligence is vital to the success of these operations. Without question, Pakistan is better placed to have good human intelligence than the Americans. The suggestion, therefore, that drone strikes be carried out "under our supervision" makes eminent sense.
A big issue of divergence between Pakistan and the US is the latter's demand that Pakistan fight and weaken hard-line groups like the Haqqani network, reportedly camping in North Waziristan, so as to improve its bargain position in the ongoing Afghan negotiations. There are obvious disadvantages for Pakistan in pursuing that line of action. Whereas the US has the option to get out if things do not turn out its way, Pakistan has to live with the consequences. It also has to watch against the US inclination to create a role for India in the post-war Afghanistan.
It needs to be said though that Islamabad must give up its deeply flawed idea of seeking strategic depth in that unfortunate country, and making it an arena of regional rivalries. But it has a legitimate interest in seeking a friendly Afghanistan. Recent reports indicate that Islamabad and Kabul have managed to forget their past quarrels and agree on a strategy to resolve the conflict, which is good news in a long time. The US must not act as a spoiler.