Pakistan, India welcome lifting of U.S. sanctions

Pakistan, India welcome lifting of U.S. sanctions

ISLAMABAD (AFP): Pakistan and India welcomed on Sunday the
U.S. decision to waive sanctions imposed after the two South
Asian rivals staged tit-for-tat nuclear weapons tests in 1998.

The response was more effusive in Islambad where the
government's efforts to pull the country back from the brink of
bankruptcy had been hampered by the sanctions' economic impact.

"This is a positive move and I think we appreciate it very
much," Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz said in an interview with
CNN.

A Pakistan Foreign Ministry statement said the sanctions had
always been "unjustified," but added that their lifting would
help strengthen cooperation with Washington.

In waiving the sanctions on Saturday, U.S. President George W.
Bush said their continuation was no longer in the US national
security interest.

India and Pakistan had been lobbying hard for the lifting of
the measures, which restricted military sales, financial and
economic assistance.

Both sides are expected to play a key role in a war on
terrorism declared by the United States in the aftermath of the
September 11 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington that
left more than 6,800 people dead or missing.

Indian Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha welcomed the sanctions'
waiver, but added it was not a "development of earth-shaking
importance".

"It's a minor issue as far as the Indian economy is concerned
because sanctions have spent themselves out," Singh told the
Press Trust of India.

"As far as the Indian economy itself was concerned, except for
certain defense supplies, sanctions had no meaning."

On Pakistan's part, Aziz insisted that the move should not be
seen as a reward for Pakistan's support for possible U.S.
military strikes on Afghanistan, where the ruling Taliban regime
has rejected repeated US demands to hand over Osama bin Laden --
suspected to be the mastermind behind the terror attacks.

"There is no question of a payback. This is just a reflection
of a better understanding of our views," Aziz said.

While tough austerity measures introduced by the military
government of President Pervez Musharraf have kept the national
economy afloat, Pakistan is still in dire need of international
assistance.

"What (the sanctions waiver) means is that the United States
can now support us very directly in multi-national institutions
like the International Monetary Fund, Asian Development Bank and
the World Bank," Aziz said.

The move also opens the door to U.S. companies looking to
invest in Pakistan's textile and oil and gas sectors, and reopens
connections with the U.S. Exim Bank.

"In terms of buying commercial aircraft, machinery ... etc,
Pakistani entrepreneurs can now look to the US as a source of
supply. This would create investment here, create jobs and help
the common man," Aziz said.

Pakistan has more than 30 billion dollars in external debt and
Islambad is expected to sign an agreement here on Monday on
rescheduling 600 million dollars of U.S. loans.

In India, the move is likely to be greeted with a sigh of
relief at a large number of major corporations who have been
denied access to crucial technologies.

"There are 51 companies which had been classified under an
entities list who will be able to get technology," said Commodore
Uday Bhaskar, deputy director of the Institute of Defense Studies
and Analysis.

These companies had been stopped from gaining technology
classified as "dual use" -- with both commercial and military
applications.

Pakistan first faced U.S. sanctions under the Symington
amendment to the Foreign Assistance Act in 1961 due to concerns
over its nuclear program. Most restrictions were later lifted by
Congress.

Then, in 1990, all U.S. military and economic aid to Pakistan
was suspended under the Pressler amendment which required the
president to annually certify that Islamabad did "not possess a
nuclear explosive device."

A separate set of measures to punish Musharraf for
overthrowing the elected government of Nawaz Sharif in a military
coup in October 1999 will only be lifted when democracy is
restored.

"We hope in time all sanctions will be removed," Aziz said.