NEW DELHI -- The controversy caused in Islamabad by the Kerry-Lugar Bill, which authorizes an annual grant of $1.5 billion to Pakistan for military and non-military purposes over the next five years, is by now well-known. But because of its implications for the entire South Asian region, the bill has also been greeted with alarm in India.
The bill's explicit goal, as stated by the U.S., is to shore up Pakistan's civilian government under President Asif Ali Zardari by providing monetary assistance to build roads, schools and other infrastructure. The implicit hope is that this will turn widespread Pakistani antipathy toward the U.S. into goodwill.
The legislation immediately sparked a tremendous backlash from the Pakistani media, opposition parties and senior politicians. Pakistan's army claimed it will compromise Pakistan's sovereignty, and expressed "serious concerns" about clauses in the legislation that demand that the U.S. secretary of state report to the U.S. Congress every six months on whether the Pakistani government is exercising "effective civilian control over the military."