US renting Pakistani army for $ 100 million a month

[babylonsister]

And why is the Times of India informing me of this, not the NYT?


http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/US_renting_Pak_army_for__100_million_a_month/articleshow/2202810.cms


US renting Pak army for $ 100 million a month
14 Jul 2007, 0340 hrs IST,CHIDANAND RAJGHATTA,TNN


WASHINGTON: The United States is paying around $ 100 million a month for the deployment of 80,000 Pakistani troops on its border with Afghanistan ostensibly for the war on terrorism, a key US official revealed on Thursday.

The money is meant to be "reimbursements" to Pakistan "for stationing troops and moving them around, and gasoline, and bullets, and training and other costs that they incur as part of the war on terror," US Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher, told a Congressional panel.

"That's a lot of money," Boucher admitted before the panel about what amounts to a $ 1.2 billion per year reimbursement. "I don't know if it comes to the whole amount of their expenses, but we support their expenses, yes."

In all, US aid to Pakistan is now close to $ 2 billion a year, according to figures provided by Boucher, the top U S diplomat for South Asia.

Besides, the $ 1.2 billion reimbursements, Washington also gave Pakistan an addition $ 738 million in 2006 in assistance programs, including $ 300 million in separate military aid.

The overall figure would put Pakistan on par with Israel and Egypt -- with a higher component ($ 1.5 billion) in overall military assistance -- as the top three recipients of US aid.

more...

[Nickster]

1. Wonder how much of that is being funneled to Al-Qaeda?

[EFerrari]

4. And I wonder when these payments started . . ,

:shrug:

[robinlynne]

5. I think right after 9-11.

[EFerrari]

7. I wonder. Also, are we paying off the ISI to leave Musharraf alone?

:shrug:

There's so much we don't know about Pakistan.

edit: spelling. :(

[babylonsister]

8. That's a drop in the bucket, probably incorporated into the billions

that are spent monthy on this illegal occupation.

[EFerrari]

9. Sure. But, I was thinking about the politics in Pakistan and how

the ISI seems to have funded Ata.

Pakistan is a complicated place, as poor Danny Pearl found out. :(

[dkofos]

16. Not nearly as much as is being syphoned off by Pervez and his cronies.

[indepat]

20. One would think some of that money would be used to roust Osama out of his Pakistani hideaway

[judaspriestess]

2. the fleecing of America

damn this pisses me off.

[sutz12]

3. And we are SO getting our money's worth...

:sarcasm:

[malaise]

6. Well the Pakistani government sure can't

afford pay for Bushco's work. What a waste of money.

Have you seen how many of the Pakistani army and police have been killed since they slaughtered over 100 people in the Red Mosque last week.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/6899621.stm

[elehhhhna]

10. $1,250 per day, per guy. Nice money if you can get it.

[sutz12]

11. Well, I'm sure each of the 'guys' gets 2 or 3 dollars of that.

:evilgrin:

[brer cat]

13. Meanwhile, back home in 'merika

people die for lack of health care, troops return from war without adequate support in place, Katrina victims still can't go home...the list goes on and on and on.

Some days I just don't know whether :mad: or :cry: fits the news.

[Faux pas]

12. Guess that explains why our troops benefits are getting cut. Pretty

damned sickening.

[formercia]

14. When I was in Pakistan

I learned from one of the case officers working with the then 'Afghan Freedom Fighters', that the ISI was taking a 50% cut of all the aid going to the anti-Soviet rebels that we were supporting. Since it's widely known that the ISI created the Taleban for their own purposes, much of the US funding was going to people that didn't have our interests in mind. I doubt if that has changed much.

[mzmolly]

15. So, we're sending money to the country that is harboring Al Qaida, do I have that right?

Something smells especially fishy here.

[formercia]

17. Smells more like a rat

King Rat to be more precise.

It's all to keep the party going. Anybody who thinks this money was spent to ensure Peace...

The so called 'Military-Industrial Complex' would go out of business if the World were at Peace.

Just think of all the jobs that would be lost. All those weapons plants, military bases, little companies that make name tags for military uniforms, jewelry stores next to military bases that sell engagement rings, casket and headstone firms, people that make and sell big pickup tricks, gun manufacturers. Fuck, the whole US economy would be in the shitter.

[formercia]

21. And guess what?

The economy wouldn't be destroyed.

People who argued against base closure said that the local economies that were supported by military bases would be destroyed, the tax base would be destroyed and so on ad nauseum. It turns out that there were temporary dislocations in the local economies, but the cities and towns that seemed to be so dependent on the military were, for the most part, better off than when the military bases were active.

We need to stop this perpetual War crap and get down to being a good place to live again.

The people who will suffer are the politically connected Robber Barons that are making a killing off of War.

[icymist]

18. Let me get this straight....

We're renting an army made up of citizens from the country that trained the Taliban that supported Al Queada to fight against the Taliban and Al Queada? What's wrong with this picture?

[conspirator]

19. No wonder the dollar is like toilet paper this days. They are printing it so fast n/t

[lovuian]

22. Oh Ya Pakistan is Bush's man

but he is never safe