Washington: In a major setback to beleaguered President Pervez Musharraf, the Democratic Party has said that the US cannot offer a blank cheque to Pakistan's "undemocratic President" as the tribal areas there have become a "santuary for al-Qaeda" and pose a serious threat to the US and Afghanistan.
"We cannot tolerate a sanctuary for al Qaeda. We will ask more of the Pakistani government, rather than offer a blank cheque to an undemocratic President," the party said in its Draft Platform adopted by the national Convention for the upcoming elections in 2008.
"The greatest threat to security in Afghanistan and America lies in the tribal regions of Pakistan, where terrorists train and plot attacks and then strike and move back across the border.
"We need a stronger and sustained partnership between Afghanistan, Pakistan and the NATO, including necessary assets like satellites and predator drones, to secure the border by wiping out terrorist camps and cracking down on cross-border insurgents," the draft said.
Asserting that the US should help Pakistan develop its own counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency capacity, the party said it will invest in the long-term development of the Pashtun border region so that the "hate crime by extremists is met with an agenda of hope".
The draft stated that the party would significantly increase non-military aid to the Pakistani people and sustain it for a decade, while ensuring that the military assistance provided is annually used to fight extremists.
