Under the CSF Washington is to provide Islamabad with total $2.5 billion, of which $1.4 billion are to be reimbursed during the current financial year. The State Bank of Pakistan statistics show that during the first half of 2010-11, Pakistan received only $633 million with the economic managers expecting a ‘timely’ release of the balance of $767 million that, the observers believe, would reflect positively on the cash-stripped country’s deteriorating external accounts. In their last meeting with new visiting US special envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan, Marc Grossman, Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Shaikh had reportedly urged the Americans to ensure a timely provision of the CSF to Pakistan.
According to the EAD official, the American authorities were reluctant to release the committed amount under Kerry-Lugar Act. “We are expecting the release of $600 million under Kerry-Lugar aid, but it won’t be possible,” the official said.
However, he said the government was “making efforts” to get the aid money released on time. Given some recent developments like the passage of a Republicans-backed anti-Pakistan-funding resolution in the US House of Representatives, it is widely perceived that Washington, being the largest donor to Islamabad, was likely to use its financial aid and assistance as a pressuring tool to make Pakistan release Davis.
An official from the Finance Ministry backed the impression that the diplomatic face-off was adversely reflecting on the financial aid from the US. “Yes, there is some impact on the disbursements. The US has blocked (the funding) and issued certain warnings (to Pakistan),” Shamim Wazir, deputy chief of the Economic Affairs Division said last week. The official, however, clarified that despite immense pressure Pakistan could not resolve the lingering issue per the will and wishes of Washington.
“Pakistan has some political problems and the government is not in a position to solve the issue immediately,” the deputy chief said adding “Judiciary and the public sentiments” were involved in the matter. “We have been meeting the Americans time and again to convince them on the release funds,” committed by them under the CSF and Kerry-Lugar, another official from the ministry said. Continued from page 1
