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Washington: Two senior US senators on Tuesday unveiled a $7.5 billion (Dh27.5 billion), five-year aid Bill for Pakistan aimed at boosting civilian ties in an alliance heavily skewed toward a military fight against militants.
The legislation introduced by Democratic Senator Joseph Biden and Republican Senator Richard Lugar directs aid to development projects such as schools, roads and clinics and aims to make Pakistan's military more accountable for the billions in US support it has been receiving since the September 11 attacks.
The bipartisan legislative move comes amid increasing attacks in Afghanistan blamed on militants based in Pakistan's border tribal belt, believed to be the sanctuary of the top Al Qaida and Taliban leadership.
Biden, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the Bill was designed to correct an "unsteady balancing act in one of the... most dangerous spots in the world" that breeds recriminations in Washington and Islamabad.
"In the minds of many Americans, we've not gotten much for the billions of dollars we spent," he told reporters.
Perceived bias
"And from the Pakistani perspective, America is seen as an unreliable ally who will abandon Pakistan the moment it's convenient to do so," Biden said, adding that Pakistanis resent what they perceive as a US bias toward military rulers.
Lugar, the senior Republican on the committee, said the Bill will help the United States seize on opportunities arising from the election in February of a civilian government that ended nine years of military rule in Pakistan.
"While our Bill envisions sustained cooperation with Pakistan for the long haul, it is not a blank cheque," Lugar told reporters.
"It calls for tangible progress in a number of areas, including an independent judiciary, greater accountability by the central government, respect for human rights, and civilian control of the levers of power, including the military and intelligence agencies," he said.
Unveiled days Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani is due to visit Washington, the Bill was hailed by US envoy Husain Haqqani as a "great initiative" that would correct past errors and ease long-standing fears in Islamabad. "A long-term commitment to Pakistan's security and territorial integrity will reinforce the commitment of the Pakistani people to fighting terrorism," he said.
Civilian shift
The Bill would triple non-military aid to $1.5 billion annually in the 2009-13 fiscal years, while making military aid conditional on certification that Pakistani security forces were working to prevent Al Qaida and its allies from operating in Pakistan or launching attacks into Afghanistan.
It would also expand US-Pakistan dialogue beyond military leaders to civilians and shift an agenda dominated by security issues to textile and farm trade, visas and other matters of concern to average Pakistanis, the senators said.
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