Revision as of 09:22, 4 September 2017

US Aid to Pakistan

See graphics: Financial aid to Pakistan by US, 2012-16

Change in US policy towards Pakistan, 2011-15

Financial aid to Pakistan by US, 2012-16; The Times of India, September 2, 2017

Change in US policy towards Pakistan, 2011-15; The Times of India, September 2, 2017

Since 9/11, Pak has received nearly $20 billion in US aid Subodh Varma | TIG

7-5-2011

  Dawn

In a startling revelation, an update released on Wednesday says that US funding to Pakistan has more than doubled since President Obama took office in 2009. In fiscal 2010 US gave nearly $4.3 billion to Pakistan, up from about $3 billion in 2009 and $2 billion in 2008. The US fiscal year runs from October to September.

This updated information was collated by Congresional Research Service (CRS), associated with the US Congres. The CRS briefs are not available in the public domain, but this document has been published by Federation of American Scientists (FAS), a nonprofit peace advocacy group.

After the killing of Osama bin Laden in Pakistan, lawmakers in Washington have been questioning the wisdom of the US policy of providing financial aid to Pakistan.

For fiscal 2011, US state department has till date not released country-specific estimates under the Continuing Resolution, a law that allows spending to continue while US Congres and President hammer out a compromise.

With these new figures, the total financial aid received by Pakistan since fiscal 2002 — that is, after 9/11 — adds up to a massive $20 billion. This is more than the aid Pakistan received from the US in the preceding half century. Between 1947 and 2000, Pakistan received about $12 billion from the US.

The latest information shows that between 2002 and 2010, Pakistan received over $13 billion as “security related” assistance and about $6 billion as economic assistance.

K Alan Kronstadt, specialist in South Asian Affairs at CRS says in that Congres has appropriated $1.6 billion under Coalition Support Funds for 2011, while President Barack Obama has requested $1.75 billion for the same head for 2012.

Times View

For a decade now, the US has been pouring money into Pakistan in the form of both military and economic aid. It should be clear by now that the money is not being used for the intended purposes, as repeated audits by the US itself have revealed. Surely it is time the US demanded some accountability. Hard questions need to be asked of Pakistan and further aid must be made conditional on enforceable guarantees that the money will be used only for legitimate purposes set out by those giving the aid. A workable monitoring mechanism must be put in place to ensure that happens. That’s the least the US administration owes to its own citizens, whose money it ultimately is.