The statement said that the new limitations would impact the administration’s ability to implement its defence strategy. In the US political system, President is the ultimate authority in conducting Washington’s foreign policy. The statement said that President Barack Obama’s advisers would suggest a veto option, if the conditions are not dropped.
The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) argued that limiting reimbursement of funds for Pakistan at this sensitive time would have negative implications for counterterrorism efforts in the region. “The Administration strongly objects to the restriction in reimbursement for Pakistan from Coalition Support Funds and the associated certification requirements in section 1211,” the OMB said in a statement.
“Taken together, the reimbursement restriction and the certification restrictions – some of which require the Secretary of Defense to certify Pakistani cooperation on issues outside of his purview – are proposed at a particularly sensitive time and would severely constrict DOD (Department of Defense)’s ability to respond to emergent war-time coalition support requirements, putting at risk the success of our campaign in Afghanistan, and increasing the risk that al-Qaida and its associates would be able to again enjoy a safe haven in Pakistan,” the statement added. Last week, the House Armed Services Committees called for conditioning both US economic and military assistance for Pakistan. It proposed the aid be limited until the South Asian country facilities NATO supplies and extends help in support of wide-ranging US counterterrorism efforts in Afghanistan. Six months ago, Pakistan closed down two supply routes – that beginning at the sea port in Karachi snake through mountainous Khyber Pass and in the southwestern province pass via Chaman – transport much-needed NATO supplies into landlocked Afghanistan.
The routes blockade was caused by a spate of unsavoury incidents that strained the relationship between the two previously close anti-terror allies. The relations slumped to their lowest point in the post-911 phase on November 26, 2011, when American warplanes destroyed two border posts in Salala, killing 24 Pakistani soldiers.
