President Asif Ali Zardari announced on Tuesday government awards for US Democratic vice presidential nominee Joe Biden and Republican Senator Richard Lugar. Biden and Lugar in July introduced a bipartisan US aid plan which calls for $1.5 billion per year in non-military spending to support economic development in Pakistan.
Zardari had awarded them the "Hilal-i-Pakistan" (Crescent of Pakistan) "in recognition of their consistent support for Pakistan", the government said in a statement.
Pakistan has figured in the US presidential election campaign, with both Democratic candidate Barack Obama and Republican John McCain speaking of the need for more focus on defeating the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan and eradicating al Qaeda from Pakistan's borderlands. Bhutto always enjoyed good relations with the United States and Zardari is also seen as a firm US ally.
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