The next morning, while having breakfast in their suite, the foursome felt as if they had a lot in common, mainly that they were all working towards a joint successful operation.
Nagib asked Rahman "Could I speak frankly with you?"
Rahman said "Of course, what's bothering you?"
Nagib hesitated a little and said "You must realize the risks to your country involved in assisting us. If the Americans find out that Pakistan had helped us produce and detonate a nuclear device on US soil the retaliation may be an all out attack on Pakistan and in the very least annihilation of the major cities and infrastructure. Who knows, India may seize the opportunity and subjugate Pakistan to Indian rule."
Rahman, who had considered all this before, said "Let me give you an explanation about the way Pakistanis view the United States. In the 1950s and 1960s Pakistan and the US were on very friendly terms. The US even supplied Pakistan with a nuclear research reactor, PARR-1, that went critical in 1965. Pakistan joined the South East Asia Treaty Organization, SEATO, and the "Baghdad Pact" while the US assisted Pakistan economically and militarily and saw Pakistan as "the most allied ally". Later, especially after Pakistan's defeat by India in the 1971 Bangladesh war it became "the ignored ally" especially after Pakistan tried to respond to India's 1974 "peaceful" nuclear test by developing its own nuclear industry. This changed again in 1980 when the USSR invaded Afghanistan and the US used Pakistan as a staging ground to support the anti-Soviet forces, including Bin Laden and the Mujahidin. After the Soviets were forced out of Afghanistan the US lost interest in Pakistan and their policy shifted strongly towards India. Throughout the 1990s Pakistan felt that the US used a double-standard by condemning Pakistan while ignoring India's nuclear efforts. The US stopped supplying PARR-1 with highly enriched uranium used to fuel the reactor and Pakistan switched to low-enriched uranium supplied by China. However, after 9/11 the US once again needed Pakistan to help it chase Bin Laden and his supporters in Afghanistan in what the Americans termed "the global war on terrorism" but Pakistanis, and other Muslims, saw this as "the global war on Islam". This reached a high point when US commandos trespassed brutally on Pakistani territory and killed Bin Laden. So, Nagib, you must understand that despite the dependence of Pakistan on US economic support and military aid the people of Pakistan resent the United States and see it as a "fair weather friend" that cannot be trusted and as a hypocrite that treats Pakistan with duplicity".
Nagib and Alia were surprised by this diatribe and remained silent for a moment or two, before Alia said "I had never known that there were such strong feelings towards the United States among the Pakistani people".
Junaid contributed her opinion to the conversation "This is also the sentiment in large parts of the military, government, intelligence services and the nuclear community. The deep animosity of Pakistanis towards the United States and its policy in the region, or against Moslems in general, was expressed by many attacks on the American embassy and consulates in Pakistan. As early as 1979 a false rumor was spread charging the US of bombing the Grand Mosque in Mecca. Students stormed the US embassy in Islamabad and burned it to the ground. After 9/11 and the response of the US a series of attacks was launched against the US consulate in Karachi between 2002 and 2006. In 2010 an attack on the US consulate in Peshawar took place resulting in the death of a handful of US Marines and citizens".
Rahman added "The Americans in their diplomatic enclave are not aware of these strong emotions. They do not know that there are many high-ranking Pakistani officials who refrain from having anything to do with US representatives." He then added "Nagib, this is the reason that you are getting so much help from General Masood and his faction in the administration. Someone else may have regarded you two as a valuable prize and would have handed you over to the Americans for some personal gains or in order to receive a reward for Pakistan".
Alia and Nagib looked at each other and she said "Thanks for the lesson we now understand that we can count on you and General Masood".
The Fourth of July party at the American embassy in Islamabad was a great success socially. It was attended by the high and mighty of the Pakistani administration, including three government ministers and many high ranking civil servants, the top echelon of the military and intelligence services and by most of the top officials of the Corps Diplomatique (or diplomatic corps as commoners addressed it). Eugene almost felt as if he had been transported to the days of the Raj, as the British government in that part of the world was remembered. The military men, there were no women of high enough rank, were dressed in their formal uniforms adorned with ribbons and medals, the civilian administrators were in their best suits and some of the diplomats even wore tuxedos. The women at this gathering were dressed either in long silk gowns and some of the younger ones displayed a fair amount of bare skin which was quite unusual in public affairs in Pakistan but none of the men seemed to complain. In these Fourth of July celebrations the US embassy served hot dogs and hamburgers (no pork, of course) cooked in the best American tradition but also some local dishes and gourmet foods for those who appreciated a good, free treat. The drinks were served in two separate areas — one served soft drinks according to the restrictions imposed by Islam, and in the other area you had to push your way through the throng to get to the counter and order your cocktail or real booze. In one corner a small band played jazz and a blues singer provided light entertainment. At one stage the ambassador asked the band to stop playing and stepped onto the small podium. He delivered a short speech about the excellent relations and cooperation between Pakistan and the US and added that although Pakistan was a young country, officially founded in 1947, it had a great tradition and has been the home to many ancient and modern civilizations while the United States was founded over two centuries earlier but was still a young country. He concluded by thanking the guests for attending the Independence Day celebrations and called for a toast to continued friendship.
The ambassador introduced Eugene to some of the more important patrons, presenting him as a scientist and administrator from the NNSA who was on a private visit to Pakistan. When asked by some guests who wanted to make polite small talk what he was looking for in Pakistan Eugene answered that he was on a comparative study visiting the closest US allies in Asia and this was his first stop. The only local person he recognized was Prof. Malick whom he had met at scientific conferences and he was surprised that the professor appeared to be ignoring him and avoiding getting in a conversation with him. As the atmosphere warmed and the guests were having a good time brought upon by the food and drinks the CIA station chief, Blakey, cornered Eugene and told him that the ambassador wanted to see him on the veranda and led him there. When they got there Eugene saw that the ambassador was engrossed in a conversation with a distinguished looking Pakistani who was introduced earlier as the minister of defense. They were talking in low voices and stopped for a moment when Eugene approached. The ambassador asked Eugene to describe the classified information that was stolen from the Los Alamos Lab and Eugene said that these were blueprints and schematic designs of the most advanced nuclear devices in the US arsenal. He added that in the wrong hands these could pose a threat on world peace, especially if they fell into the hands of radical terrorists. He also emphasized that the US administration viewed this very seriously and would do anything, barring nothing, to retrieve the stolen files. The ambassador then interjected that the people responsible for stealing the files were American citizens and according to the latest surveillance information were in Pakistan at present. The defense minister turned pale and beads of perspiration appeared on his high forehead and said that he knew nothing about this. The ambassador implied that there may be elements in the Pakistani government that would like to acquire these blueprints in order to improve their nuclear arsenal and do so clandestinely. The minister admitted that there was a strongly pro-Islamist and anti-American faction that may be involved in such a plot and promised to try and find out what was going on. Balkey knocked on the door and told the ambassador that he was needed at the reception, so the ambassador left first and the minister and Eugene waited for a minute before following him.