US says will review financial aid to Pakistan

JERUSALEM, Nov 4 (Reuters) US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said today the United States would review billions of dollars of aid to Pakistan after President Pervez Musharraf declared emergency rule.

''Obviously we are going to have to review the situation with aid, in part because we have to see what may be triggered by certain statutes,'' Rice told reporters traveling with her in Jerusalem.

Pakistan has received about 10 billion dollars in US aid since 2001, with much of that in counter-terrorism assistance.

Rice did not say which aid would be reviewed but she made clear that there were ongoing counter-terrorism concerns in and around Pakistan that must be faced.

''We have to be very cognisant of the fact that some of the assistance that has been going directly to Pakistan is directly related to counter-terrorism missions. This is a complicated matter,'' she said.

Pakistan this year is receiving about 700 million dollars in US economic and military assistance and in 2008 is expected to receive more than 800 million dollars. It also receives billions of dollars in counter-terrorism assistance.

REUTERS NY RAI2142