Not to be a pain in the ass, but could you back the statement that Pakistan was verboten to US travelers. I have yet to see a real reference to it.
I would like to see that too.
In 1981 the President of Pakistan was Muhummad Zia-ul-Haq an anti-communist who was aiding the Afghans against the Soviet invasion. It is highly unlikely that the United States had a travel ban in place at the time.
Travel bans are rare and usually used against the most hostile regimes (Castro’s Cuba, North Vietnam, North Korea, Red China, etc.) The US has usually had cordial or friendly relations with Pakistan. Indeed, India was friendly with the Soviets and less supportive of the US.
Things might have been more hostile during the Carter years but probably not beyond the Soviet invasion Afganistan. It certainly would have not reached the level of a travel ban extending into the Reagan years.
Considering that my aunt, a religious missionary, went to Pakistan several times in the early 80s, including a long stretch in 1981, casuing her to miss a rather significant milestone in my life, and she undoubtedly traveled with a U.S. passport, I'd like to see this, too.