Pakistan ISI Should Fear Donald Trump's Second Term

Pakistan has long played a dangerous double game with the United States.

- SAVIO RODRIGUES

Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) has long operated as the shadowy force behind instability in South Asia, backing jihadist networks in Afghanistan, fomenting terrorism in India, and now, playing a pivotal role in destabilizing Bangladesh. While successive U.S. administrations have tolerated Pakistan's duplicity, the second term of Donald Trump could bring a reckoning unlike any before. The assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani in 2020 was a stark warning to all state-backed terror networks: no one is untouchable. Given Pakistan's deep entanglement in Bangladesh's current chaos, its patronage of radical Islamist groups, and its hand in the persecution of minorities, the ISI has every reason to fear Trump's return to power.

The killing of Soleimani was not just about Iran; it was about sending a global message. Trump's decision to eliminate one of the most influential figures in Middle Eastern geopolitics proved that he does not engage in endless deliberation when dealing with threats—he acts. Unlike past U.S. presidents who hesitated in fear of escalating tensions, Trump took out Soleimani in a targeted drone strike, demonstrating a level of decisiveness that sent shockwaves through intelligence agencies worldwide. This precedent should alarm the ISI, which has been responsible for harboring terrorists for decades, from Osama bin Laden to the Taliban leadership. If Trump sees the ISI's activities in Bangladesh as a direct threat to regional stability and American interests, there is little doubt that he would be willing to take equally forceful action.