Biden-Lugar Bill has not died down: Haqqani

Washington, Jan 31 (ANI): Pakistan's Ambassador to the United States, Hussain Haqqani, has said that so long as Washington considers Islamabad its friend, financial aid would not stop, and added that the Biden-Lugar Bill has not died down.

He further said that the Biden-Lugar Bill would be presented in few days with the signatures of its new movers, besides till now there was no hitch in its approval.

Geo TV quoted him as saying that the majority of both the Houses were not in favour of slapping more restrictions on Pakistan.

Haqqani said that the Congress couldn't get time to discuss Biden-Lugar Bill on agenda, but there was no such thing that the Bill for Pakistan aid couldn't be approved.

He said that this Bill would be approved in few weeks and, thereby, the disbursement of fund would kick off.

Earlier, the landmark US bill that provides for 15 billion dollars in economic assistance to Pakistan, as a US frontline ally in combating terrorism over the next 10 years beginning 2009, was legally dead even before it was debated and voted by either chamber of the US bicameral legislature.

The bill S-3263, popularly known as 'Biden-Lugar bill' or "Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act 2008" was introduced in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee by its then chairman Senator Joseph Biden and Senator Richard Lugar, and the Senate Committee had approved the bill unanimously; but it died before it could be tabled before the Senate for debate and vote.

An official of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmed that "Bill S-3263 is dead as it was not debated and approved by the US Congress that completed its term by the end of 2008." (ANI)