No certification to Pakistan on curbing of terror groups: US

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State John Kerry has not issued any certificate to the Congress on the progress made by Pakistan in taking action against terrorist groups, his spokesperson said today.

The US State Department has neither made any recent notification to the Congress under the Kerry-Lugar-Berman bill for release of American aid to Pakistan.

It was way back in 2013 that the State Department had notified the Congress about disbursement of aid to Pakistan and for this the Secretary of State had used the "national interest waiver" and not the certification requirement.

In fact, no aid has been disbursed to Pakistan under the Kerry-Luger-Berman in recent past, US State Department Spokesperson Jen Psaki told reporters at her daily news conference.

However, she quickly added that there are a number of ways under which the US provides financial aid to Pakistan.

"Congress has not been notified of the request. Congress has not approved of any request (of aid to Pakistan under Kerry Lugar Berman Bill)," Psaki told reporters at her daily news conference.

In the past, the "national interest waiver" has been used to provide Congressional-mandated aid to Pakistan, she said, adding that no certification has been issued with regard to progress made by Pakistan in taking action against terrorist networks.