New Delhi: The Obama administration has suspended $ 800 million military aid to Pakistan to show its displeasure with Islamabad for not doing more in the fight against terror.
US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta asked the Gilani government to go after the al Qaeda's new chief Ayman al-Zawahri who is believed to be hiding in Pakistan, just like Osama bin Laden who was killed in a US raid on May 2 in Abbottabad.
US National Security Advisor Tom Donilon while confirming suspension of the aid, described the relations with Pakistan as 'difficult' and that it 'must be made to work overtime'.
"The Pakistani relationship is difficult, but it must be made to work over time. Until we get through these difficulties, we'll hold back some of the money that the American taxpayers have committed to give," Donilon said.
The suspended aid, which is about one-third of the $ 2 billion in annual American security assistance to Pakistan, includes about $ 300 million to reimburse Pakistan for some of the costs of deploying more than 100,000 soldiers
along the Afghan border to combat terrorism.
It also comprises millions of dollars in training assistance and military hardware, Pentagon officials said.
"Yep", Donilon told the ABC news channel in an interview when asked about The New York Times news about US suspension of aid to Pakistan.
However, Donilon said the Obama Administration's policy towards Pakistan has not changed, even though it has become more complex and complicated. "It's not changed. It's not failed, pardon me," he said.
"The truth of the matter is, our relationship with Pakistan is very complicated. Obviously, they've been an important ally in the fight on terrorism. They have been the victim of enormous amounts of terrorism. But right now they've taken some steps that have given us reason to pause on some of the aid which we're giving to the military, and we're trying to work through that," he said.
Washington has been unhappy with Pakistan army's request for a significant cutback of American military trainers and placing restrictions on the number of visas for US personnel.
Islamabad's contention that this is a temporary move has not cut ice with the Obama administration which feels that any reduction in the number of trainers and other personnel can come in the way of effective support of the US to Pakistan in the war on terror.
"It's a complicated relationship and a very difficult complicated part of the world. Obviously there's still a lot of pain that the political system in Pakistan is feeling by virtue of the raid that we did to get Osama bin Laden.
Something that the President felt strongly about. We have no regrets over (it)," he said.
The move illustrates the depth of the debate inside the Obama administration over how to change the behaviour of one of its key counter-terrorism partners, the NYT said.
The news of halting or withdrawal of aid comes days after US military chief Admiral Mike Mullen's remarks linking Pakistan government to the murder of a journalist.
Some of the curtailed aid is equipment that the US wants to send but Pakistan now refuses to accept, like rifles, ammunition, body armour and bomb-disposal gear that were withdrawn or held up after Pakistan ordered more than 100 Army
Special Forces trainers to leave the country in recent weeks.
Some of it is equipment, such as radios, night-vision goggles and helicopter spare parts, which cannot be set up, certified or used for training because Pakistan has denied visas to the American personnel needed to operate the
equipment, the paper quoted two senior Pentagon officials as saying.
With additional information from PTI
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