Good Money After Bad in Pakistan
Bush Administration Wants to Divert Funds From Terrorism to Paki F-16s
Those who follow the war on terrorism know that we’ve spent hundreds of millions of dollars in additional aid to Pakistan since 9/11. What that money was supposed to buy us was a rock-solid moslem ally right next door to the Taliban and Afghanistan.
For the most part, Pakistan seems to have gotten the better part of the deal for going on seven years.
The Bush Administration and the informed public have known since the beginning of this envigored U.S.-Pakistan relationship that some of this money would go down the rat hole of the Pakistani military-political complex. The ISI, Pakistan’s version of the CIA has a history of support for Islamic extremists and there have always been questions about whether or not it was under the complete control of the Pakistani government.
Our tax dollars bought us an easier road to hoe in late 2001 and 2002 while the Taliban was officially routed from Afghanistan. Since then, the picture is not so clear.
The Taliban is resurgent in areas of Afghanistan, basing their operations just across the border in Pakistan’s semi-autonomous Tribal Areas. You may as well drop the semi, because the Pakistani government has shown neither the will nor the ability to semi-control those lands.
The question should’ve been asked years ago: what’s the return on investment in Pakistan? Why aren’t there more strings tied to funding? Why aren’t there U.S. demands to control the world’s newest terrorist and Islamic extremist hotbed which resides within their sovereign borders?
The Bush Administration has been all carrot and no stick with Pakistan.
Over the last two days, the administration has publicized its intent to funnel some of the funds we provide Pakistan from the anti-terror account to the buy some new fighter planes account. This is more carrot. For years, the Pakistanis have coveted the bigger ticket items in the U.S. arsenal. There were always strings attached if they got what they wanted.
What U.S. taxpayers should ask President Bush on this Pakistani deal, is “What have they done for US lately?”
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