<p>The Senate Appropriations Committees action, which requires approval from the full Senate and the House of Representatives, comes as Washington has escalated pressure for action against the group amid rising tensions in relations between Pakistan and US.<br /><br />In addition to the Haqqani network, the Committee has also called for action to be taken against groups like al-Qaeda, Quetta Shura and Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistani Punjab based terrorist group blamed for Mumbai attacks.<br /><br />Top American officials have accused Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of having links with the Haqqani network, which it also blames for the latest terrorist attack on the US Embassy in Kabul.</p>.<p>"The bill includes strengthened restrictions on assistance for Pakistan by conditioning all funds to the Government of Pakistan on cooperation against the Haqqani Network, al-Qaeda, and other terrorist organisations, with a waiver, and funding based on achieving benchmarks," the Senate committee said in a statement after it voted the Fiscal Year 2012 Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Bill.<br />The bill provides USD 161.4 million for Department of State operations.<br /><br />The bill does not specify amounts for assistance for Pakistan but does provide USD one billion for the Pakistan Counter-insurgency Capability Fund which is USD 100 million below the President’s request.</p>
<p>The Senate Appropriations Committees action, which requires approval from the full Senate and the House of Representatives, comes as Washington has escalated pressure for action against the group amid rising tensions in relations between Pakistan and US.<br /><br />In addition to the Haqqani network, the Committee has also called for action to be taken against groups like al-Qaeda, Quetta Shura and Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistani Punjab based terrorist group blamed for Mumbai attacks.<br /><br />Top American officials have accused Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of having links with the Haqqani network, which it also blames for the latest terrorist attack on the US Embassy in Kabul.</p>.<p>"The bill includes strengthened restrictions on assistance for Pakistan by conditioning all funds to the Government of Pakistan on cooperation against the Haqqani Network, al-Qaeda, and other terrorist organisations, with a waiver, and funding based on achieving benchmarks," the Senate committee said in a statement after it voted the Fiscal Year 2012 Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Bill.<br />The bill provides USD 161.4 million for Department of State operations.<br /><br />The bill does not specify amounts for assistance for Pakistan but does provide USD one billion for the Pakistan Counter-insurgency Capability Fund which is USD 100 million below the President’s request.</p>