That Pakistan has repeatedly asked the US not to violate its space does not speak of mistrust but a sense of indignation. What on earth a country has got the right to infringe on the security of other state? But the position of the government certainly becomes awkward on the question of sovereignty when it has to attend to its moral responsibility to inform the civilized world as to what Osama bin Laden, whom Navy SEALs picked up dead from Abbottabad in a unilateral operation, was doing there. Of course, no heads have rolled down in Pakistan on such a gross ‘information failure’ so far.
The civilian government is also at odds with itself for it has failed to get an effective anti-terror law and due to this particular reason the court has freed known terrorists for want of evidence. When the security agencies steal away such outfits to extract evidences, the court insists on presentation of the ‘missing persons’.
To carry weight with the Obama administration, the government should first publically assert that the army is under its complete and effective control and that it extends complete sway over FATA. In the absence of such a claim, the whole demand on the US to respect the sovereignty of Pakistan just serves domestic needs— note that the Difa-e-Pakistan Council (DPC), which comprises 40 plus right wing groups, has threatened to besiege parliament in case it decides on ties with the US against its whims.