ISLAMABAD – The United States announced Saturday its decision to cut $300million in military aid to Pakistan.
The move is part of a broader aid suspension announced in January, as USPresident Donald Trump tries to pressure Islamabad over its alleged supportfor militant safe havens.
The cut came days before Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is due to touchdown in Islamabad for his first visit since the election of new PrimeMinister Imran Khan, who has vowed to seek better relations with the USamid a new push for Afghan peace talks.
Pakistan´s Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi played down the cut.
Analysts have said the move highlights the difficulties of trying tocontrol a quasi-ally whose support is vital in the long-running Afghanconflict.
*What does the US want from Pakistan?*
Washington accuses Pakistan of supporting militant groups including theAfghan Taliban.
It says the insurgents have safe havens in Pakistan´s border areas and itaims to use them as a regional bulwark in Afghanistan against arch-nemesisIndia.
Pakistan´s support for these groups must end, Washington says.
Islamabad has repeatedly denied the accusations, insisting it haseradicated safe havens and accusing the US of ignoring the thousands killedon Pakistani soil and the billions spent fighting extremists.
*What has the US done?*
On Saturday the Pentagon announced it was cutting $300 million in aid toIslamabad “due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of theSouth Asia Strategy”. The request was pending Congressional approval.
Qureshi said the money was part of the Coalition Support Fund. The funding,worth $900 million, is set aside to refund Pakistani spending oncounter-terrorist operations and helps pay Pakistan for allowing US andother NATO supplies into Afghanistan.
In January Washington announced it was freezing payments from the fund aspart of a broader suspension of up to $2 billion in aid.
US officials have said that aid could be restored if Washington seesdecisive action from Pakistan. The $300 million cut and comments by aPentagon spokesman suggest Washington does not feel this has happened andis ratcheting up the pressure.
“It is not a new aid cut. It is a just an implementation of former aidsuppression,” analyst Huma Yusuf of the Wilson Center in Washington toldAFP.
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*Why didn´t Washington axe aid earlier?*
US figures show that more than $33 billion has been given to Pakistan indirect aid since 2002. Cutting the money off seems an obvious step.
But the US does not want a complete break in ties with Pakistan. It needsaccess to its roads and airspace to get supplies into Afghanistan.
Pakistan is also still believed to have the strongest influence over theAfghan Taliban, making its cooperation necessary for any peace talks.Momentum for fresh negotiations has been growing in recent weeks.
*Will the US strategy work?*
“This is something which of course has got Islamabad´s attention, but (is)not sufficient enough to rattle the current government,” Pakistanipolitical scientist Maria Sultan told AFP.
Some analysts have said there is no real way to pressure Pakistan, whichbelieves it is more important to keep Afghanistan out of India´s orbit thanto clamp down on cross-border militancy.
Others say the US risks driving Pakistan further into the orbit of China,which is investing heavily in the country.
The announcement, and Pompeo´s visit, come weeks after Khan took officeamid concerns he would remain tolerant of militant groups.
When the aid freeze was first announced in January, Khan, then inopposition, called for Pakistan to close the US supply lines to Afghanistan.
Since coming to power he has called for a more balanced relationship withthe US. But questions remain over how much influence he will have in acountry where foreign, defence and security policies are widely seen ascontrolled by the powerful military.
Qureshi says the two countries have “shared objectives” and vowed to raiseconcerns with Pompeo when he visits this week.
In the end, observers say, until the US addresses Pakistan´s fears overIndia, it will not shake its support for militant proxies. – APP/AFP
