US exchanges Pakistan’s security aid for a $700 billion bill

The United States had promised Pakistan security aid which will now be exchanged for a $700 billion bill.

The United States Congress has slashed the security-oriented financial aid to Pakistan by approving a $716.3-billion defense authorization bill.

The move comes after the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for 2019 increased the military expenditure and opted to not bring any changes in policy.

As per the recent NDAA, the security aid to Pakistan has been cut down to $150 million—having once begun from almost $750 million per year to $1 billion.

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The NDAA 2019, which was earlier passed by the US House of Representatives in the Senate, has now been sent to US president Donald Trump for approval.

Meanwhile, this cut down in the aid hints at the United States’ failure to pressurize Pakistan to take actions against the several terrorist outfits, including Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Haqqani network.

In January this year, the United States made its stand clear that the aid to Pakistan has only been suspended and not cut-off, as it wanted the country to take an aggressive approach in eliminating terrorism.

Earlier this year, the US had announced that they were stopping the military aid to Pakistan, as it was not taking “necessary steps” to curb terrorism.

US State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert had said the embargo would remain in place until Pakistan takes action against the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani network.