US Plans $2B in Military Aid to Pakistan

It will complement $7.5 billion in civilian assistance
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Oct 22, 2010 2:45 PM CDT
US Plans $2B in Military Aid to Pakistan
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks at the Fifth Annual Gala of the American Task Force on Palestine in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2010.   (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

The United States today laid out a five-year, $2 billion military aid package for Pakistan as it pressed the Islamabad government to step up the fight against extremists there and in neighboring Afghanistan. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced the plan at the end of the latest round US-Pakistani strategic talks. The Obama administration will ask Congress for $2 billion for Pakistan to purchase US-made arms, ammunition, and accessories from 2012 to 2016.

The new military aid replaces a similar but less valuable package that began in 2005 and expired on Oct. 1. It will complement $7.5 billion in civilian assistance the administration has already committed to Pakistan over five years, some of which has been diverted to help the country deal with devastating floods. The aid also should help Pakistan bolster its efforts to go after Taliban and al-Qaeda affiliates on its territory. (More Pakistan stories.)

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