Daily Times

WASHINGTON: In a rare letter to the editor of The New York Times, former president and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari has questioned the United States’ commitment to the security needs of Pakistan. Responding to an NYT editorial which attacked Pakistan being a “duplicitous and dangerous” partner for the US and Afghanistan, Zardari wrote, “What was once a strong partnership allied against threats to the region from Russia and non-state actors is sadly frayed.” “Despite our common security interests and a deep democratic kinship, there is ambiguity toward the bilateral relationship from officials in both countries,” he said citing the struggle between Pakistan and the US over the purchase of F-16 fighter jets. “Pakistan has suffered repeated mass-casualty attacks by the Taliban and Al-Qaeda, most recently in Lahore, where 74 were killed and 338 wounded. We are fighting for our lives.” “If there are factions in Congress that don’t believe that we are committed to fighting terrorists, they should come to Pakistan and bear witness to our solidarity and resolve,” wrote Zardari. “In the coming weeks, State Department officials will be in Pakistan for meeting with our government. I hope that they will take this opportunity to assure us that they remain committed to supporting our security needs,” While, there has been opposition in Congress over financing the F-16 deal, the Department of State has favored selling the aircraft to Pakistan, saying that F-16s were the right platform to support Pakistan’s counterterrorism efforts.