WASHINGTON - Pakistan's Ambassador to the United States Aizaz Chaudhry Friday said that Pakistan had paid a staggering human and financial cost in the fight against terrorism.
Ambassador Chaudhry made these remarks to APP when asked to comment on a report by a foreign news agency that Pentagon has withheld $50 million to be paid under the Coalition Support Fund.
According to the report, the funds were stopped after Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, during a Congress defense committees' hearing, said he could not verify that Pakistan had made enough efforts against Taliban-affiliated Haqqani group.
"It is a well-known fact that Pakistan's counter-terrorism efforts have resulted in a significant decline in terrorist attacks," Ambassador Chaudhry said and reminded that the country had been a victim of terrorism and paid a staggering human and financial cost over the past decade. Pakistan, he added, has also spearheaded the fight against terrorism and had achieved significant successes.
"Pakistan is maintaining the momentum in fighting terrorism as is evident through Operation Radul Fassad and the recently launched Operation Khyber-IV," said the ambassador.
On withholding of funds, the ambassador drew the attention to the fact that the funds in question were a reimbursement of the expenses incurred by Pakistan towards achieving "our common objectives in the fight against terrorism' and were not assistance.
According to the reports, the US had allotted $900 million to Pakistan under the Coalition Support Fund, out of which $550 million had already been reimbursed. The remaining $300 million was withdrawn by Congress as part of a broader appropriations act.
The report, quoting a Pentagon spokesman Adam Stump, said however that withholding of funds did not reduce the significance of the sacrifices that the Pakistani military had undertaken over previous years.
US FIRMS SHOULD EXPLORE PAK INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES
Aizaz Chaudhry has invited the multinational firms of US to explore the countless investment opportunities in Pakistan by taking advantage of favourable investment climate. According to a press release received from Washington DC on Saturday, Aizaz was talking to the representatives of the US multinational firms during a luncheon reception hosted in his honour by the Potomac Exchange, Washington DC. The ambassador briefed the participants about the tremendous economic turnaround witnessed by Pakistan in recent years. All the economic indicators are projecting upward trend in various sectors of the economy, he added.
Ambassador Chaudhry stated that the security situation in Pakistan had improved considerably. As a result of Pakistan's counter-terrorism operations, without any discrimination, the terrorists were on the run and their infrastructure dismantled. The improved security situation was having a dynamic effect on economy and Pakistan was attracting foreign investment from all over the world.
Ambassador Chaudhry also narrated the salient features of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project and said that CPEC would benefit not only Pakistan but the entire region. In an era of changing economic alignments, regional connectivity was the key to progress & prosperity, he added.
Ambassador Chaudhry underscored the need for bringing the US travel advisory in consonance with the positive reality of today's Pakistan.
In the follow up discussion, participants asked a number of questions focusing on different sectors of Pakistan's economy and the investment opportunities available to foreign investors.
President of the Potomac Exchange, Mrs Katherine Moss, thanked the ambassador for his participation and stated that the business community was delighted to know about the improvement in the economic and security situation in Pakistan, and that the members were looking forward to benefitting from new investment opportunities in Pakistan.
The Potomac Exchange is a Washington, DC-based business forum which facilitates meaningful dialogue between US businesses and foreign missions in the United States. Its members are some of the largest multinational companies of the US, including Aetna, 3M, Bank of America, BMW Group, Boston Scientific, Kodak, Fluour, General Mills, Google, Lockheed Martin, McGuire Woods, Oracle, Pernod Ricard USA, TE Connectivity, Coca Cola and Viacom. Senior executives from these companies attended the lunch