US Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs Christina Rocca has confirmed $300 million economic aid and $300 million as security assistance for Pakistan during the coming US fiscal year (October 2004-September 2005).
The budget request both from Indian and Pakistani will support export controls on nuclear technology, she said, adding that "Pakistan is making good progress in unearthing Dr A Q Khan proliferation network, and we are asking them to share what they find with us".
She was presenting the Bush administration's 2005 fiscal year budget request for foreign assistance in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee highlighting US aid programs in progress.
Rocca said Pakistan remains "a crucial ally in the war on terror". In the coming fiscal year United States plans to provide Pakistan $300 million in economic aid and $300 million in security assistance, she said.
The $600 million package is the first instalment of a five-year, $3 billion US commitment to help Pakistan fight terrorism and sustain economic development, she said.
"We must help tackle conditions that breed terror by expanding education improving economic growth and employment opportunities and helping to restore a fully functional democracy," she said.
U S bilateral support programs are helping in spread of freedom and building prosperity in South Asia, said Rocca.
In a prepared statement presented to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on March 2, Rocca listed aid programs which are in progress or planned, as she presented the Bush administration's 2005 fiscal budget request for foreign assistance.
The Number One U S policy goal in South Asia, she said, "is combating terrorism and conditions that encouraged it in Afghanistan and Pakistan".
Rocca said the Bush administration hopes to strengthen new democratic institutions in Afghanistan, while supporting counter-narcotic activities and continuing to provide equipment and training for the Afghan National Army and the Afghan police forces.
In order to reach the grass-roots level of Afghanistan's population, the United States "will support women's centers that provide health and legal services; will build hundreds of schools and clinics through Provincial Reconstruction Teams; will train teachers and provide schoolbooks; and will help farmers re-establish their livelihoods," she said.
The 2005 foreign assistance budget for South Asia envisions expanded co-operation with India on civilian nuclear activities, civilian space programs, high technology trade, as well as an expanded dialogue on missile defence, she said. The budget request will support Indian and Pakistani export controls on nuclear technology, she said.
Rocca said the assistance will help India to "complete successful economic reforms, support HIV/AIDS and child survival programs, and provide aid for her most vulnerable groups".
In Sri Lanka, U S assistance will fund "short-term, high impact programs" designed to boost reconstruction and reconciliation projects, she said.
Rocca said U.S. assistance in Nepal would be directed towards vulnerable populations under Maoist rebel control, as well as development programs that would combat poverty and a lack of economic opportunity.
"Our FY 2005 resource request for South Asia will help consolidate hard won gains and enable us to press ahead against the challenges that remain," said Rocca. She added that the United States "cannot afford to rest until we see a fully peaceful, democratic and prosperous South Asia, entirely free from terror and nuclear threat."
Following is the text of Assistant Secretary Rocca's statement relevant to Pakistan:
Pakistan remains a crucial ally in the war on terror. Over 550 al Qaeda and former Taleban operatives have been captured, including al Qaeda operational commander Khalid Shekh Mohammed and September 11th plotter Ramzi bin al-Shibh. We have strengthened border security through support for an air wing, checkpoints, new outposts in Quetta and Peshawar, road construction to improve access, and training for - and improved co-operation between - law enforcement entities in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.
Pakistan's economy has moved from crisis to stabilisation. The government continues to pursue education reform, including for madrassahs, aimed at preparing young Pakistanis to gain employment and compete in the global marketplace.
Pakistan is making good progress in unearthing the A.Q. Khan proliferation network, and we are asking them to share what they find with us.
In January, we launched our Next Steps in Strategic Partnership (NSSP) initiative with India.
The rapprochement between India and Pakistan that began last year has enabled not only a successful meeting on regional co-operation in January, but the beginning of a composite dialogue on the issues that divide them.
Despite suspension of formal negotiations between the government and the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka since last year, and a political crisis within the government, the cease-fire there continues to hold.
Impressive as these developments are, we cannot afford to rest until we see a fully peaceful, democratic and prosperous South Asia, entirely free from terror and nuclear threat. Our FY 2005 resource request for South Asia will help consolidate hard-won gains and enable us to press ahead against the challenges that remain. Chief among these are - in the spirit of the Afghanistan Freedom Support Act - assisting Afghanistan's new democratic institutions, broadening security (including through the Act's Department of Defence drawdown authority), ensuring a full economic recovery, and helping to end the drug trade in Afghanistan.
In Pakistan, recent attempts on President Musharraf's life underscore the need to shut down terrorist organisations and the networks that support them; something the government is working hard to do. Resources requested for Pakistan will help facilitate the war on terror on all fronts.
FIGHTING TERROR IN THE FRONTLINE STATES: Over $1.6 billion of our $1.9 billion FY 2005 foreign operations resource request supports our number one policy goal - combating terror and the conditions that breed terror in the frontline states of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Total U.S. assistance for Afghanistan thus far, including this year's acceleration of reconstruction, comes to over $4 billion. The President's $1.2 billion request for Afghanistan in FY 2005, which includes $300 million from the Department of Defence, will sustain our accelerated programs.
The Government of Pakistan continues to capture al Qaeda terrorists and Taleban remnants. President Bush has committed to work with Congress to demonstrate sustained support for these efforts and for ongoing economic, education and democracy reforms.
Our FY 2005 request for Pakistan includes $300 million in economic and $300 million in security assistance for the first of a five-year, $3 billion commitment.
The symmetry is no accident. As we enable Pakistan to combat terror by providing $300 million in Foreign Military Financing, we must help tackle conditions that breed terror by expanding education and economic growth and employment opportunities and by helping to restore a fully-functioning democracy.
The $300 million in FY 2005 Economic Support Funds (ESF) requested will include both macro-stabilisation and social sector elements.
Remaining budget resources requested for Pakistan in FY 2005 - including Development Assistance; Child Survival and Health; International Narcotics, Crime and Law Enforcement; and Non-proliferation, Anti-Terrorism, Demining and Related Programs resources - will fund critical border security, counternarcotics and law enforcement programs, in addition to ongoing development programs for education, democracy and health that demonstrate our support to ordinary Pakistanis.
REGIONAL STABILITY: Regional Stability is another high policy priority in South Asia. We credit the vision and statesmanship of Prime Minister Vajpayee and President Musharraf and their governments for the remarkable progress recently achieved towards resolving the issues that divide them. At the same time, India is conducting a simultaneous dialogue with the Kashmiri group, the All Parties Hurriyat Conference. We will be watching developments with hopes for continued success and will continue to support these efforts to resolve the long-running conflict.
Our bilateral interaction with India and Pakistan includes wide-ranging discussions on how to control the onward proliferation of nuclear technology. We are urging both countries to bring their export controls in line with international standards and to enforce them effectively.
Our FY 2005 request includes program support for their efforts in this regard.
In Sri Lanka, the 2003 suspension of formal peace negotiations between the government and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was followed by an October LTTE proposal for an interim administration in the predominantly Tamil areas of the north and east of the country, which we hoped would help the parties resume formal negotiations.
But a continuing stand-off between the Prime Minister and President has prevented a return to the talks; with parliamentary elections called for April. However, the Sri Lankan people want to see their leaders bring an end to this war. The cease-fire continues to hold.
An informal peace process continues, bringing increased interaction among the ethnic communities, and growing trade and economic opportunity.
Our FY 2005 request for Sri Lanka will fund short-term, high impact programs that are both an incentive to peace, and a boost to reconstruction and reconciliation in war torn areas. Nation-wide development and health programs will support the Government's economic competitiveness and anti-poverty efforts, while our democracy programs will support reconciliation and promote reintegration.
Of one billion Muslims in the world, over 400 million reside in South Asia. Our public diplomacy and development assistance programs are building stronger ties and understanding between the United States and South Asian Muslim communities. Like the President's recently announced Greater Middle East Initiative - now being developed in consultation with prospective participants - our bilateral programs support freedom and prosperity throughout the South Asia region.
Our bilateral programs are complemented by our $2 million regional Economic Support Fund (ESF) program, which serves as an incubator for innovative or multi-country pilots to foster democracy or support education, income generation and conflict resolution in key South Asian Muslim communities.
Projects thus far include expanding USAID Dhaka's successful community leader training on health, development and human rights and hopefully, helping to explore a similar program in Afghanistan.
We are taking a regional Muslim women's rights network to the next level, helping to establish ongoing collaboration across borders to gain acceptance of women's rights under Islam, using successful models from Southeast Asia. We are also supporting the development of Pakistan's new independent radio through a grant to Internews.
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