US approves $ 1.5 bn aid to Pakistan
Thursday, October 1, 2009
WASHINGTON: The US Congress on Wednesday approved tripling non-military aid to Pakistan to help fight extremism in the country, sending the measure to President Barack Obama for signing into law.
Final action on the legislation came as the House of Representatives approved it. The legislation authorises $1.5 billion a year for the next five years as part of a bid to build a new relationship with Pakistan that no longer focuses largely on military ties, but also on Pakistan’s social and economic development.
The bill also stipulates that US military aid will cease if Pakistan does not help fight “terrorists,” including Taliban insurgents and al Qaeda followers. “We can’t allow al Qaeda or any other terrorist group that threatens our national security interests to operate with impunity in the tribal regions or any other part of Pakistan,” said the bill’s sponsor, Democratic Representative Howard Berman. “Nor can we permit the Pakistani state — and its nuclear arsenal — to be taken over by the Taliban,” he added.
To keep military aid flowing, Pakistan must also cooperate to dismantle nuclear supplier networks, the bill said. Islamabad could do this by offering “relevant information from or direct
access to Pakistani nationals associated with such networks,” it said, referring to nuclear scientist AQ Khan.
“Both governments — the Chinese and the Pakistanis — plot and manoeuvre against our interests all the time,” said Representative Dana Rohrbacher, a Republican. “The threat of radical Islam is real, but it’s not going to be solved by us being irresponsible” with billions in taxpayer money, he said.
The assistance, which must be approved by congressional appropriators annually from 2010 to 2014, is intended to fund a range of projects, including Pakistani schools and roads, agricultural development, energy generation, water resource management and the judicial system.
The bill was approved by the Senate last week. Passage followed lengthy negotiations among lawmakers and the administration over what conditions to place on Pakistan, where officials had urged no strings be attached.
source
Labels: 9/11, US Aid, US Pakistan Relations, War on Terror
posted @ 5:12 PM,
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