US lawmaker moves anti-Pakistan bill in Congress

WASHINGTON: Congressman Ted Poe on Thursday introduced a strongly worded bill in the Congress to declare Pakistan a “state sponsor of terrorism,” according to media reports.

“Not only is Pakistan an untrustworthy ally, Islamabad has also aided and abetted enemies of the United States for years,” said Congressman Ted Poe, who is the Chair of the House Subcommittee on Terrorism.

“From harbouring Osama bin Laden to its cozy relationship with the Haqqani Network, there is more than enough evidence to determine whose side Pakistan is on in the war on terror. And it’s not America’s. It is time we stop paying Pakistan for its betrayal and designate it for what it is: a State Sponsor of Terrorism,” Poe said while introducing the bill, the Pakistan State Sponsor of Terrorism Act of 2015, in Congress on Thursday.

The bill requires the US president to issue a report within 90 days, answering whether Pakistan has provided support for international terrorism. Thirty days after that, the secretary of state is supposed to submit a report confirming that Pakistan is in fact a State sponsored terrorist country and if not, then the justification of that decision.

The same bill was presented in the Congress last year but there was no ample time to discuss and formally convince Congress as to why Pakistan should remain to be considered as an ally in United States war against terrorism.

However, contrary to the common perception, the commander of US Central Command has commended the Pakistan Army’s cooperation with the US military in recent counter-terrorism operations along the border of Afghanistan. He says that the recent meetings with Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa were encouraging. “They had been supportive recently with US commander in Afghanistan Gen Nicholson in some operations along the border,” he said while referring to the Pakistan military. “That is a very positive sign,” he said.

However he does appear worried over the recent increase in tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan and significance of ties between the two countries for the success of US mission.

He said despite challenges with respect to the US-Pakistani relationship, there is a substantial level of engagement of the US troops with their Pakistani military counterparts. “We continue to execute a robust joint exercise programme. Most recently, the Pakistani Air Force sent airmen and aircraft to participate in Exercise Red Flag and Green Flag at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada this past summer,” he said.

He also said, “Most notably, the Pakistani Navy is the most consistent and longstanding participant, second only to the United States, in Combined Task Force (CTF)-150 (counter-terrorism operations) and CTF-151 (counter-piracy operations) led by US Naval Forces Central (USNAVCENT).”