US Pledges New Financial Aid to Help Pakistan Fight Virus
US Pledges New Financial Aid to Help Pakistan Fight Virus By Ayaz Gul VOA
The United States announced Friday several new programs worth more than $8 million to assist Pakistan in stemming the spread of coronavirus nationwide and to care for afflicted people.
Pakistan, with a population of 220 million, has recorded more than 7,000 cases of the virus that causes COVD-19, and the number is growing by the day. The pandemic has killed more than 135 people.
U.S. ambassador to Islamabad Paul Jones explained in a statement Friday that the new funding will be used to establish labs so Pakistanis living in hotspots can be tested, treated and monitored to stop the spread of the virus.
The aid will also fund high-tech emergency operation centers across Pakistan and train community health workers to assist people in their homes to lessen the burden on hospitals.
Jones noted a portion of the contributions will also be used for new life-saving activities in Afghan refugee camps and host communities in Pakistan, administered by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
The South Asian nation hosts about 3 million Afghans, both legal refugees and illegal economic migrants.
“All of these contributions were identified as top priority needs by Pakistani authorities, and they are fully paid by the American people,” he emphasized.
Jones said the United States is a leading supporter of the immediate and exceptional measures just agreed on by G-20 nations, which will provide substantial relief to Pakistan.
The G-20 group of leading global economies earlier this week agreed to suspend debt payments owed to them by developing nations. The move is meant to help these countries deal with the health and economic fallouts of the coronavirus pandemic.
“What I’ve described today is the latest chapter in a long, vibrant U.S.-Pakistan health partnership,” the ambassador said.
Washington last month redirected $1 million in existing funding and provided $1 million in new funding to assist Pakistan in its fight against the coronavirus.
The United States has contributed more than $1.1 billion to Pakistan’s health sector and about $18 billion overall to the bilateral development partnership.
Meanwhile Report Ayuz Gul
Pakistan Criticizes Proposed Sale of US Missile Systems to India
Pakistan said Friday that a proposed new multimillion-dollar sale of American missile systems to Islamabad’s archrival, India, would destabilize an already “volatile” situation in South Asia.
The U.S. Department of State on Tuesday cleared the delivery of 10 AGM-84L Harpoon Block II air-launched missiles,16 MK 54 lightweight torpedoes and related equipment to India.
New Delhi has not commented on the $155 million deal, which is still subject to congressional approval.
“Pakistan has articulated its concerns regarding the sale of sophisticated weapons to India, which would further destabilize the region,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Aisha Farooqui told her weekly news conference.
The deal is “particularly disturbing” at the time when global efforts are focused on fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, Farooqui said, while responding to a question from VOA.
“There is a high possibility of India conducting a false flag operation while global efforts are directed towards combating the pandemic.”
Tensions are high
Pakistan’s military tensions with India remain high and both nuclear-armed nations have been locked in intense skirmishes across their border in the divided region of Kashmir. The tensions over the Himalayan territory have sparked two of the wars between them and continues to be the primary source of bilateral tensions.
Pakistan accuses the Indian armed forces of staging fake militant operations on India’s side of the border and using them as an excuse to orchestrate cross-border military attacks on the “baseless” grounds that the militants were sent and backed by Pakistan. New Delhi denies the accusations.
Farooqui said Islamabad has repeatedly “alerted” the international community about India’s “aggressive designs” toward Pakistan and other neighboring countries in South Asia.
U.S. defends proposed sale
Washington, however, says, “The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region.”
It said the weapon systems will be integrated into the Indian Navy’s Boeing P-8I advanced maritime patrol and anti-submarine warfare aircraft to improve India’s capability to meet current and future threats from enemy weapon systems.
“This proposed sale will support the foreign policy and national security of the United States by helping to strengthen the U.S.-Indian strategic relationship and to improve the security of a major defensive partner, which continues to be an important force for political stability, peace, and economic progress in the Indo-Pacific and South Asia region,” a U.S. statement said.