Pakistan: 'Kerry-Lugar bill is unacceptable' - who is the real enemy?

October 18, 1:34 PMForeign Policy ExaminerAimee Kligman

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Supporters of a Pakistani religious party Jamaat-e-Islami participate in a rally against the recently signed Kerry-Lugar bill, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2009 in Karachi, Pakistan. President Barack Obama on Thursday signed into law a US$7.5 billion aid package for Pakistan that the U.S.-ally's military criticized as American meddling in its internal affairs. The banner on bottom reading 'Kerry-Lugar bill is unacceptable'. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

Images of John Kerry in Afghanistan appear on CNN; John King is interviewing him so as to understand

what he's doing there, what he perceives is the threat to the U.S., and will the president be sending additional troops to the country, as requested by General McChrystal.

The official position of the administration, as well as the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee (John Kerry) is that the U.S. will wait until the results of the presidential election, now facing a possible run-off due to 'irregularities' in the voting. The same point was discussed on 'This Week with George Stephanapoulos' , stressing that the U.S. will need a credible, committed partner to fight this war against people who attacked us.

However, there is a contradiction which no one seems able to reconcile: it has been stated, and confirmed today by Kerry, that al-Qaeda is not really in Afghanistan. They are operating with renewed fervor in Pakistan, as witnessed by the continuous, horrific attacks against Pakistani police headquarters, and other major city centers. Their scourge in the Swat Valley has left thousands of refugees and homeless people trying to either relocate, or return to the area, which has returned to relative calm.

What is the Kerry-Lugar-Berman Bill?

Also known as the 'Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act of 2009', this bill was signed by President Obama on October 15, 2009. The bill bill provides $7.5 billion in aid for economic and social programs in Pakistan over the next five years.The release of some of the funds is conditional on the fight against Islamic militants, seen by critics as interference in country's internal affairs.

This explains the tsunami of protests by Pakistanis on the street which see the bill as an infringement on Pakistan's sovereignty. During an al-Jazeera report from Pakistan, a man on the street was questioned and said that the fight is not only against the Taliban, but against the U.S. and its allies. Which begs the question as to whether we need to establish who and where is the enemy, and are we just wasting our resources in Afghanistan?

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