Pakistan's Trump gamble faces scrutiny after Democrats' midterm gains

Pakistan's leaders face potential scrutiny of their close ties to US President Donald Trump after Democrats gained ground in Tuesday's congressional elections, raising concerns in Islamabad about the sustainability of their White House access. Pakistan's political and military leadership spent two years cultivating Trump, with army chief Asim Munir as the main channel, but the diplomatic outreach has yet to yield major economic benefits, including a requested $10 billion facility from the US Treasury. Several agreements involving Trump's family and associates, such as stablecoin and hotel deals, could draw congressional investigations, though analysts note bipartisan support for counterterrorism cooperation and Iran mediation may offer Islamabad an opening.