I ask this in light of the ongoing fallout from the terrorist attack on an Indian security patrol in India's far-north Jammu and Kashmir province. That attack last week took 40 lives and has understandably enraged the Indian people. But it's a familiar story. The Pakistani-based and Pakistani-government-supported Jaish-e-Mohammed group is responsible for the attack. In predictable fashion, Prime Minister Imran Khan has responded to the attack with arrogant disdain for Indian concerns. That takes me back to the financial aid question.
If we mean to confront terrorists, we should stop investing in them!
The key here, then, is for the U.S. to pressure Pakistan's primary benefactors to suspend their aid support in lieu of serious Pakistani counterterrorism action. This should start with the International Monetary Fund, which is currently in advance stage negotiations with Pakistan over a new bailout. Considering U.S. influence in the IMF, it shouldn't be too hard to put new funds on ice. But the U.S. should also pressure China, which provides pathetic cover for Pakistani terrorist collusion, to restrain its support for Islamabad.
Then, there's Saudi Arabia. With Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman having benefited greatly from the Trump administration's diplomatic support during the fallout over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, it's time for Trump to call in a favor and demand a tougher Saudi approach to Pakistan. It's a relevant concern in that the crown prince was in Islamabad this week.
Yet, we must also pay heed to the scale of Pakistan's impudence here. Islamabad is notoriously unreliable in spending financial aid on that which it has pledged to spend it — namely, on economic investment and structural reform, and in areas such as education and health services. Instead, aid invariably percolates its way into the Pakistani political-army patronage network, fostering embedded corruption. Pakistan's army is also extremely adept at hiding various expenditures outside of the defense budget. In the end, thanks to Pakistan's ISI intelligence service, foreign aid supports terrorists such as the JeM and other groups. This is intolerable.
President Trump deserves credit for leading on this issue before now. He must now take the next step and tighten the screws. Pakistan can no longer expect access to foreign aid while simultaneously attacking an important American partner.
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