Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Tuesday defended U.S. legislation that will triple aid to his country and dismissed suggestions that conditions written in the bill trample on Pakistan's sovereignty.

A demonstrator jumps over burning tyres during an anti-American rally in Peshawar on Wednesday. Supporters of Jamaat-e-Islami gathered in the streets of Peshawar to voice their discontent with the US aid bill. — Reuters

Both chambers of the U.S. Congress have passed legislation sponsored by Sens. John Kerry and Richard Lugar in the Senate and Rep. Howard Berman in the House of Representatives that would increase U.S. aid to Pakistan to $1.5 billion a year between 2010 and 2014. The bill now awaits the signature of President Barack Obama. It includes accountability measures to ensure that the U.S. aid is not misused, including a requirement that the government of Pakistan has demonstrated a sustained effort to combating terrorist groups and has made significant efforts towards that end.

Analysts believe the bill, in its current form, will pit Pakistan's military against a fragile civilian leadership.

A point of contention for the Pakistani military is that the bill calls on the US President to provide "assessment of the extent to which the Government of Pakistan exercises effective civilian control of the military, including a description of the extent to which civilian executive leaders and parliament exercise oversight and approval of military budgets, the chain of command, the process of promotion for senior military leaders, civilian involvement in strategic guidance and planning, and military involvement in civil administration." This language is particularly worrisome to the Pakistani military, which is opposed to civilian oversight.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in Washington, Qureshi said the Obama administration has "no intentions of micromanaging Pakistan, nor will Pakistan permit micromanagement... Never will we allow any compromise on Pakistan’s sovereignty."

Clinton said she regretted that "some people do not understand" the bill and urged those who doubt its intention to "read the legislation, which is very clear in its intent." She said the legislation strengthens the bonds of friendship and cooperation between the American people and the people of Pakistan. She said it would help build civilian institutions, healthcare, education systems, infrastructure, and other important priorities of the government and people of Pakistan.

Qureshi described the overwhelming bipartisan support for the legislation in the U.S. Congress as a "recognition of the sacrifice the people of Pakistan have made over the years fighting extremism and terrorism." He added, "After a long time, we see that the Executive Branch and the Legislative Branch of the U.S. Government are working in harmony and are one as far as Pakistan is concerned. And that’s a very strong signal. That’s a very strong message for the people of Pakistan."

In her meeting with her Pakistani counterpart, she reaffirmed the commitment of the USA to an "enduring partnership with Pakistan, and to work with the government and the people of Pakistan to help spur sustainable economic development, enhance safety and security, and build on recent progress in the fight against the militants who have spread terror and instability in Pakistan."

Qureshi said Pakistan was looking for a long-term commitment from the USA. "The people of the region have to be reassured that the United States has a long-term vision, not just for Afghanistan and Pakistan, but the entire region. And when I say that, we have to keep in mind history. ... And the inconsistency of the past has to be kept in mind. And we have to build on learning from the mistakes of the past," he said. Asked how long a term of commitment he was seeking, the minister replied: "Till the job is done."

Qureshi, who met his Indian counterpart S.M. Krishna in New York on September 27, described the meeting as positive and constructive. "And being a politician, I can read between the lines and I can tell you I got positive vibes, because my message was positive, my engagement was positive, my intentions are positive," he said. He said Krishna gave no signal of disagreeing with his message of moving forward on the composite dialogue. "He was in total agreement with my message. And obviously, he’s going to go back and consult with the leadership in Delhi and we’ll take it from there," he said, adding, "But I have suggested a way forward."

According to PTI, the legislation’s architect and a key US Senator said “no conditions” have been imposed. “There is no conditionality whatsoever in this legislation (Kerry-Lugar bill) with respect to civilian assistance and the economic assistance that is provided. No conditionality. It is unfortunate the bill has been characterised in some quarters in ways that are just not accurate,” John F Kerry said.

Pak army concerned about riders
Afzal Khan writes from Islamabad

At a crucial meeting held Wednesday the top brass of the Pakistan army expressed "serious concern" over army-related clauses in the Kerry-Lugar aid bill but left it to the country’s parliament to “voice the will of the people”.

The army high command met amid the nationwide outrage over conditions attached to the $1.5 billion annual United States aid in the bill that has been approved by both houses of Congress and is currently awaiting presidential assent. A report from Washington, in the meanwhile, said President Barack Obama has withheld his signature apparently in view of the strong response of the Pakistani army.

Political circles interpreted the reaction as an implied rebuff to the Pakistani government that was trumpeting the passage of the aid bill as President Asif Zardari's “singular diplomatic success”. It also exposed the widely discussed fault lines in the thinking of the country’s civil and military establishment on various internal and external issues. An outright rejection by the parliament may also bring a difficult twist in Pakistani-US relations.

Army chief Gen Pervez Kayani presided over today’s meeting whose agenda also included review of the current status of operations in Swat and preparations for the impending offensive against the Taliban and al-Qaeda in south Waziristan. One report said Kayani had also conveyed the army's reservations on the conditionality in the bill relating to Pakistan's military and its nuclear programme.

In his opening remarks obliquely referred to the widely held view in Pakistan that the conditionality impinged on the country's sovereignty. "The chief of army staff reiterated Pakistan is a sovereign state and has all the rights to analyse and respond to the threat in accordance with its own national interests" said a press release issued by an army spokesman after the meeting.

"The Kerry-Lugar bill also came under discussion during the conference. The forum expressed serious concern over clauses impacting national security”, the release added.

Coinciding with the corps commanders’ meet, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani chaired a federal cabinet meeting to discuss the unexpected angry reaction in the country.

Meanwhile, the national assembly also began a debate on the bill in the afternoon. Reservations were expressed by the main opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the PML-Q, who have strongly rejected the bill, as well as the two main coalition partners - the MQM and the Jamiat Ulema Islam.