US says $101m for Pakistan to be used to strengthen democracy, fight terrorism

WASHINGTON: The US Department of State on Wednesday said that $101 million funds for Pakistan will be used to strengthen democracy and fight terrorism.

The Biden administration requested Congress a whopping $585 million budget for South and Central Asian countries out of which $101 million will be set aside for Pakistan. The amount will be used to fund programs that strengthen democracy and civil society, counter terrorism and extremism, support economic reforms and debt management, the State Department’s spokesperson Matthew Miller said during the daily press briefing.

“We have made similar budget requests and received similar budget authority from Congress in the past and invested, used the funds appropriated by Congress to invest in our partnership with Pakistan, and we would use funds, should they be appropriated by Congress, to invest in similar programs as we have in this fiscal year and previous ones,” he explained.

Responding to another question, he stressed that “internal political matters in Pakistan are something that we do not take a position on.” He then added, “We urge respect for democracy, respect for human rights and treatment of all political parties equally.”