Withhold all aid to Pakistan until Afridi is freed: US lawmakers

[faizahmad]

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WASHINGTON: Two top American lawmakers have asked US President Barack Obama to withhold all aid to Pakistan until the country releases a doctor who helped the CIA track Osama bin Laden.

"Until Dr (Shakil) Afridi is released from prison, we urge you to withhold all unallocated foreign assistance money for Pakistan remaining for this fiscal year. We must send a message not only to Pakistan but to any other countries seeking to use American taxpayer dollars to subsidize their subversion of America's global priorities," Senator Rand Paul and Congressman Dana Rohrabacher, said in a letter to Obama.

A copy of the letter was released to the press yesterday. Through the use of a door-to-door vaccination drive, Afridi bravely assisted US intelligence services in identifying the residents of the Abbottabad complex which was later confirmed to be the home of bin Laden, the two Congressmen said.

"For his work in supporting the successful search for Osama bin Laden, Dr Afridi deserves our appreciation. Unfortunately, the government of Pakistan has made it a point to punish Dr Afridi for helping to expose Osama bin Laden's Pakistan hideout in the most severe manner possible," they said.

They said in response to this situation, they would be proposing legislation to withhold all foreign assistance money to the government of Pakistan until Dr Afridi is released

Withhold all aid to Pakistan until Afridi is freed: US lawmakers - The Times of India

[salman108]

USA will overplay this card .. Until the people will know what is the real worth of it.

The politicians need money, not the people.
USA AID is actually monthly bribe payments to the politicians.

[Nelson]

Pakistan should understand that it can't survive without US money. The US aid is one of the reasons she survived.

Release the doctor & eliminate terrorists from your soil, then everything would be fine. Trust me, it WILL work.

[53fd]

Pakistan should understand that it can't survive without US money. The US aid is one of the reasons she survived.

Release the doctor & eliminate terrorists from your soil, then everything would be fine. Trust me, it WILL work.

Overseas Pakistanis send $13 billion back to Pakistan every year. You think Pakistan cannot survive without US's paltry $2 billion a year?

[Developereo]

Afridi bravely assisted US

Can ToI ever report any news without editorializing and embellishing?

[Icewolf]

So withold all aid Pak don't need AIDS....

[muse]

Rupee sinks to record low against dollar
By AFP
Published: May 31, 2012


KARACHI: The rupee sank to its lowest level against the dollar Thursday amid panic in the forex market, as Pakistan’s central bank denied it would have to return to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for assistance.

The currency slid 0.9% to 93.8350 per dollar, which is a record low, according to Malik Bostan, president of Forex Dealers Association.

In an interview published in The Wall Street Journal on Tuesday, bank governor Yaseen Anwar was quoted as saying the government’s failure to control the deficit could make it difficult to meet the more than $4 billion in IMF loans due in the fiscal year starting July 1.

“This statement created havoc in the market causing a drop of 1.3% in the rupee’s value against dollar in two days,” Mohammad Sohail of Topline Research told AFP.

However, in comments issued on Thursday, the State Bank of Pakistan said the country faced no risk in being able to make next year’s IMF payments from its reserves.

“The decline in our projected reserves will be partially offset by an increase in remittances which will exceed $13 billion this fiscal year,” Anwar said.

“Additional foreign direct investment (is) in the pipeline that includes US company investments in the power sector,” he said.

But he conceded that the fiscal deficit and the lack of external financing will continue to challenge Pakistan, especially the central bank.

“Yet, let me assure you that Pakistan will not stumble into a situation that requires emergency external assistance,” he added.

Analysts said another factor that had devalued the rupee by 4.1% this year was the uncertainty over Pakistan’s now six-month blockade on NATO supplies to Afghanistan.

“The rupee is in greater pressure as well because of the delay in the settlement of Pakistan’s dispute with NATO, which has made uncertain the payment of billions of dollars of the Coalition Support Fund to Pakistan,” Sohail said.

[Mercenary]

Overseas Pakistanis send $13 billion back to Pakistan every year. You think Pakistan cannot survive without US's paltry $2 billion a year?

That overseas money will dry up if Pakistan is declared a terrorist state and thus people overseas cannot send money to Pakistan.

[Icewolf]

@Mercenary

Pakistan can't be declared a terrorist state if US wants to stay in Afghanistan...

[Thorough Pro]

What is stopping them from just witholding it, why link it with every other incident in Pakistan. Desperation at its best.

[OrionHunter]

The souls of most of these Yankee lawmakers seem transfixed on Pakistan! Seems they don't have anything else to do! Jeeeez!

[muse]

That overseas money will dry up if Pakistan is declared a terrorist state and thus people overseas cannot send money to Pakistan.

Mercenary, you seem to think all the cards in the hands of the US - you really don't understand what has happened to the US in Afghanistan, you don't understand that it's not just Bahrain but Qatar and Kuwait have now become "untenable" - Don't get me wrong, the US is a mighty potent force, but it's not just winning but holding and that "holding" bit is not possible without assistance, a lot of it.

[SamranAli]

why dont the US understand that it can stop aid and Pakistan still can survive. I would say do a favor and just go ahead.

[fatman17]

yes pl withold all aid to PK. as if it made a whole lot of difference the last 3 times it was done - 65, 71 and 89. in the end it was the US who lifted the bans. we survived. we found new avenues for our defence needs. we were forced to make a drive towards indigenization. we will again!

[illusion8]

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Can ToI ever report any news without editorializing and embellishing?

Flat answer to your question....NO!!!