The New York Times stated back in 2008: “The idea that Pakistan’s military and intelligence agencies could simultaneously be aiding the Taliban and like-minded militants while taking money from the United States is not as far-fetched as it may seem.” Indeed. It wasn’t far-fetched then, and since then came Pakistan’s outrage over the bin Laden killing, the allegations that the ISI was involved in the Mumbai jihad murders, and more. Not a penny should go to this failed rogue state. But the jizya will no doubt continue to flow.
“Pakistan to Seek Continued U.S. Funds to Combat Terror,” by Gopal Ratnam, Bloomberg, July 16, 2014:
Pakistan plans to seek continued U.S. aid to help pay for its battle against terrorist groups in its northwestern provinces after American combat forces leave neighboring Afghanistan in 2016.
Pakistan expects to keep about 150,000 troops in North Waziristan until about 2017, even after its current operation to flush out terror groups in the area is completed, a Pakistani defense official said in an interview in Washington.
Since the Pakistani troop presence in the border region is intended to aid stability in neighboring Afghanistan, Pakistan plans to ask the U.S. to shoulder some of the costs in the form of a fixed annual sum because its economy is still weak, the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss a topic that’s still being negotiated.
Pakistan has received billions of dollars from the U.S. since 2002 as compensation for fighting terrorist groups within its borders, and the idea that it should receive more is shocking, said Christine Fair, a professor at Georgetown University in Washington and the author of “Fighting to the End: The Pakistan Army’s Way of War.”
“That is the most outrageous thing I’ve heard,” Fair said in an interview. “They’re basically seeking compensation for stabilizing a border that the ISI is busy destabilizing.”
She was referring to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence agency, which U.S. intelligence officials say also supports Taliban groups, the Haqqani network and other militant groups that attack coalition troops in Afghanistan.
As of 2013, the U.S. had paid Pakistan $11 billion out of the Pentagon’s coalition support fund budget as reimbursement for the South Asian nation’s military efforts aiding U.S. counterterrorism operations. Including other military and economic aid, the U.S. has given Pakistan about $28 billion during the 12 years through 2014, according to the Congressional Research Service.
Tehrik-e-TalibanThe U.S. is likely to acquiesce on the aid request because the Obama administration is concerned about the safety of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal, Fair said.
“The Americans are very interested in helping Pakistanis do what they’re doing to kill the TTPs,” Fair said referring to members of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, which has gone on an offensive against the Pakistani government. “We are paying them to mow the lawn even though they’re fertilizing other parts of the lawn” by aiding groups that attack coalition forces, she said.
The U.S. halted reimbursements for 2012 when Pakistan blocked NATO cargo transiting through the country to Afghanistan in retaliation for a U.S. airstrike that mistakenly killed 24 Pakistani border troops.
‘Deepest Regrets’The supply routes remained shut for seven months and were reopened in July 2012 only after former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed “deepest regrets” for the accidental killings….