Expelled US trainers might be allowed to return
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
Islamabad, Aug 27, IRNA -- Pakistan and the US are negotiating a fresh arrangement for allowing American military trainers back into the country, reports said on Saturday.
Pakistan had reportedly expelled US trainers which has prompted the US to block $800 million military aid to Pakistan.
The new agreement, if finalised, will allow a smaller number of American military trainers in Pakistan compared to their pre-May 2 strength. While neither side has revealed publicly how many US troops were in Pakistan, some reports have suggested that the number was around 200.
Pakistan kicked out about 90% of the US military personnel stationed in the country as a reaction to the May 2 Abbottabad raid by US forces.
America and Pakistan struggle to redefine their relationship in the aftermath of a series of challenging developments this year, one issue that has come up for debate in the US is aid to Pakistan.
Washington has offered to restore the aid if Pakistan reverses its decision on the US military trainers.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani told an eight-member US congressional delegation led by Senator Robert Casey that a common strategy needs to be devised that covers the relationship between the two countries beyond 2014, when US troops are scheduled to leave Afghanistan.
The US delegation also met Army Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and visited at the ‘Memorial to the Martyred’ in General Headquarters in Rawalpindi.
According to polls and anecdotal evidence America’s approval rating among Pakistanis has been declining.
This has largely been driven by an American foreign policy seen as being against the interests of Pakistan and other Muslim countries.
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Islamic Republic News Agency/IRNA NewsCode: 30538302
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