Human trafficking: US may cut Pak aid

ISLAMABAD/WASHINGTON: The Trump administration is warning Pakistan it could lose US civilian aid worth tens of millions of dollars this year if Washington finds that the South Asian nation has not done enough to combat human trafficking, officials said.

An aid cutback would deal a fresh blow to US-Pakistan relations following President Donald Trump’s suspension of some $2 billion in security assistance over what Trump said was Islamabad’s failure to crack down on insurgent sanctuaries used for attacks into Afghanistan.

A large portion of US civilian aid — $265 million in 2017, according to a source at the US embassy in Islamabad — could be withheld if the state department puts Pakistan on a list of worst global offenders in human trafficking in an annual report due out in June.

The funding is relatively modest for the size of Pakistan’s economy. But Islamabad could suffer a heavier jolt if Washington also decides to oppose new assistance from international financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the

PAKISTAN FEARS WASHINGTON COULD USE ITS VOTE IN THE IMF, TO WHICH THE U.S. IS THE LARGEST CONTRIBUTOR, TO OPPOSE NEW LOANS TO ISLAMABAD.

World Bank.

These are all sanctions that the US, under federal law, can impose on any country receiving the lowest grade on human trafficking unless Trump issues a full or partial waiver.

By making good on its threat against Pakistan, the Trump administration would raise questions about whether it was using the Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report to pressure Islamabad to do more on counter-terrorism.

Pakistani interior minister Ahsan Iqbal told Reuters the country has “taken very stringent steps” against human trafficking and the issue “should not be used for political means to pressurize countries.”REUTERS