WASHINGTON/ ISLAMABAD (SW): Following the report about the United States suspending its Coalition Support Fund (CSF) for Pakistan, latest reports suggests the US has also told Pakistan that it would not be certifying to the Congress that its (Pakistani) counter-terrorism operation in North Waziristan damaged the Haqqani network.
Pakistan’s Dawn news has cited ‘highly places sources’ as saying this was conveyed by the US Department of Defense to the Pakistani mission in Washington as well as to the authorities in Islamabad.
Two weeks ago, the US indicated to Pakistan that further extension in the Coalition Support Fund (CSF) beyond 2015 may not be possible.
Under the CSF arrangement, the US reimbursed Pakistan for operations and maintenance costs incurred in direct support of its operations in Afghanistan. Since 2001, the US has reimbursed $13 billion to Pakistan, which is the largest recipient of the fund.
The issue about the future of CSF, according to a defense source, was discussed at the 23rd Defence Consultative Group Meeting (DCG)-Interim Progress Review (IPR) held at the defense ministry on Tuesday (August 11).
Pakistan had in 2014 lobbied for conversion of the CSF into a ‘Stability Support Fund’ after changing some of its parameters. The US administration initially looked convinced about the proposal, but it couldn’t materialize due to Pakistan government’s failure to pursue the matter at the political level. Additionally, the source said, the US needed to realize that Daesh was also posing a serious threat to this region.
The latest US move is seen politically more damaging for Islamabad than its financial impact, which is significant nevertheless for being an important source for narrowing the current account deficit. More importantly, it coincided with the deterioration in ties with Afghanistan because of Kabul’s allegations that Islamabad continued to harbor Taliban bases from where attacks were being launched, Dawn added.
Doubts have been expressed in the past by both the US and Afghanistan that the Haqqani network has been spared in the Operation Zarb-i-Azb. But it’s the first time that the US has taken such a harsh step.
It also shows how seriously the Americans take the continuing threat posed by the Haqqani network, whose current chief Sirajuddin Haqqani earlier this month took over as Taliban’s deputy chief during the succession in the insurgent group that followed the disclosure about Taliban chief Mullah Omar’s death.
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