'Pak aid rises despite crunch'

LONDON British Prime Minister Gordon Brown maintained Thursday that Londons spending on counterterrorism steps in Pakistan was increasing despite the fall in the value of the pound.
Counter-terrorism expenditure in Pakistan and generally is increasing this year and will increase next year, Brown said. He added: It is important to recognise our counter-terrorism effort is also linking up the efforts of our police forces here and our border control system, which is keeping the country as safe as possible.
Meanwhile, talking to The Nation, British Foreign Office Spokesperson Natasha Khan said Pakistan gets 28 per cent share in funds allocated for counter-terrorism; Afghanistan 13 per cent; Saudi Arabia and East Africa get seven per cent each while Yemen five per cent.
According to the FO spokesperson, Pakistan got 3.7 million pounds in 2007-08 in war against terrorism, 6.2 million in 2008 to 09; 8.3 million pound in 2009-10 while Islamabad would get 9.5 million pounds in 2010 and 2011.
Natasha said UK always prioritised Pakistan in every sector and it would give 665 million pound financial assistance to Islamabad other than counter-terrorism aid.
Agencies add: Brown was speaking the day after Foreign Office minister Glenys Kinnock said programmes to tackle terror attacks and radicalisation in Pakistan had been cut because of the weak value of the British currency.
But on Thursday, Kinnock moved to clarify her remarks, saying the overall Foreign Office budget had been hit by the falling value of the pound, but counter-terrorism spending was increasing.
The Foreign Offices budget for counter-terrorism in Pakistan will rise from 8.2 million pounds in 2009-2010 to 9.5 million pounds in 2010-11, she told the House of Lords, the upper house of parliament.
British officials say a number of terror plots aimed at Britain have been planned in and launched from Pakistan.
Kinnock said Pakistan was 'by far the largest recipient of counter-terrorism spending, receiving more than a quarter of the budget.
A 'small number of counter-terrorism projects had been cut or scaled back, but the projects affected had not been 'delivering as effectively as our other projects, she said.