The Politics of Aid: Controversy Surrounds the Pakistan Aid Bill

Karin von Hippel, of the Ploughshares Funded Post-Conflict Reconstruction Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, explains the Pakistani uproar concerning the Kerry-Lugar Pakistan aid bill, which would provide $7.5 billion in non-military aid over 5 years.  Critics in Pakistan warn of anti-terrorism provisions, U.S. access to nuclear proliferation networks; and provisions that potentially weaken the army with strict regulations.  Von Hippel writes that the Pakistani opposition can teach the U.S. important lessons about how to correct past mistakes while providing “a genuine chance at a new beginning: if the people of Pakistan see aid money coming in and making a real impact on development, they will finally see the United States as a friend and a benefactor.”