Washington: Democratic Congressman Frank Pallone on June 11 assailed the US decision to enter into a Trade and Investment Facilitation Agreement (TIFA) with Pakistan.

In a letter sent to US Trade Representative Robert B Zoellick, the New Jersey Congressman and co- founder of the India Caucus, expressed concern that this agreement would exemplify American approval of a military dictatorship in Pakistan that has in fact promoted terrorist activity.

Pallone also wrote that such an agreement could pave the way for Pakistan to enter into a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the United States, a development that has potentially disastrous effects on a struggling American economy.

"The US will not support terrorism, at home or abroad, and we must be clear and consistent in our mission to encourage democracy throughout the world," Pallone wrote in his letter to Zoellick.

"Any trade agreement that America enters should be explicit in this cause. I believe that the US entering into a trade agreement with a nation that has recently been called 'the new epicenter of terrorism' by the Regional Security Officer of the US embassy in Pakistan, is a step in outright opposition of our nation's democratic interests, Pallone added.

PTI