WASHINGTON: Effective engagement with Pakistan is critical to promoting the consolidation of democratic institutions and economic stability, and supporting the government’s counter-terrorism activities and capabilities, a US State Department spokesman said on Monday.
Responding to a question about the opposition of some Congress members to the sale of F-16 aircraft to Pakistan, Spokesman John Kirby said that the US State Department opposes conditions to the release of appropriated foreign assistance funds.
“We believe that such conditions limit the President and the Secretary’s ability to conduct foreign policy in the best interest of the United States,” the spokesman said. While the US Congress has approved the sale, some members have objected to using Foreign Military Assistance to support it.
To another question, the spokesman said that he did not believe that Pakistan hates the United States.”Pakistan is a partner here in the effort to go after extremists there in the region,”, he added.
The spokesman said that Pakistan has already stated that they were not going to distinguish or discriminate between terrorist groups and that Pakistanis themselves have fallen victim to this brutal, violent extremist ideology and the terror tactics behind it.
“Nobody has ever alleged that we’ve agreed with Pakistan on every issue,” he said but added that the United States can have candid, frank discussions with Pakistani leaders and that it speaks to the maturity of the relationship and to the “recognition that it’s an important relationship on both sides”.
He said that there was no question that extremist groups inside Pakistan hate Pakistani government and they also hate what the United States stand for.”Which is why the relationship between the United States and Pakistan is important,” he said and added that it was, therefore, important to continue to look for ways to work together to go after these extremist groups.
