When Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif walked into the Oval Office with his Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir late Thursday, it was more than a courtesy call. US President Donald Trump rolled out a closed-door welcome that Islamabad is already selling at home as a diplomatic triumph: after years of American suspicion, its civilian leadership and military brass were now seated across the oval table in what seems like vindication.

Before the meeting, Trump praised US-Pakistan relations and called Shehbaz and Munir “great leaders.” Speaking to reporters at the Oval Office, he referred to Munir – seen as Pakistan’s de facto leader – as a “great guy.”

“We have a great leader coming, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, and the Field Marshal. Field Marshal is a very great guy, and so is the

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