Everyone here is going gaga over Barack Hussein Obama. Forget the less than flattering video footage and carping of the Twitterati ufffd Obama can dance the dance. Weren't you tuned in?

OK, first promulgate a possible $2 billion dollars (200 crore) in military aid for Islamabad and then sell US defence equipment, nuclear hardware and civilian aircraft to New Delhi ufffd it's beautiful! And it's good business; something that every American president understands. Isn't it a bit hard to digest America's assurances that it will not allow the misuse of the small aid that it provides Pakistan?

The latest benefaction shows that the United States is also keen to meet the wish-lists of the army, which has long been a major player in Pakistan and provides vital logistical assistance for troops in Afghanistan.

The US Congress needs to ratify the $2 billion-dollar military package, which would be spread over five years.

While the Kerry-Lugar-Berman Act got appreciable endorsement last year, some US lawmakers have since voiced impatience at what they perceive as ingratitude from Pakistan. Still, some analysts predict that Congress would ultimately approve the military aid, which replaces an earlier five-year package that expired.

Symbolism and semantics ufffd that's what the Mumbai part of the trip was all about. The highlight of Barack Obama's visit was undoubtedly his address to the joint session of Parliament where he endorsed India's permanent membership of the UN Security Council, and spoke at some length about Pakistan and the terrorist safe-havens within its borders.

But let's not get carried away; let's not forget that in the short term at least, Islamabad will always be more important to the US than New Delhi. So despite being aware of Pakistan's support of terrorism against India, and notwithstanding all the evidences and dossiers that P Chidambaram come up with, the equations between Washington and Islamabad are not going to change any time soon.

It's important to note that while America wants to use India to balance out the threat of China, it is likely to use Islamabad to check against New Delhi. So even when US gets out of Afghanistan, Pakistan's strategic importance is not going to wane; it will only take a different turn. Obama may have skipped Islamabad during his Asia visit but Pakistan has got nothing to worry about!