US urges "equal treatment" for all political parties in Pakistan

The US State Department on Wednesday stressed "equal treatment" for all political parties in Pakistan and separated itself from the country’s "internal politics".

Addressing the routine briefing, the spokesperson, Matthew Miller, said the US does not participate in Pakistan’s internal politics.

“Internal political matters in Pakistan are something we do not take a position on,” he said.

“We urge respect for democracy, respect for human rights, and treatment of all political parties equally,” Miller added. 

The spokesperson was asked about the extra funds to eliminate terrorism in Pakistan referring to the recent explosion in a girls’ school in North Waziristan.

In response, Milled said that $101 million funds for Pakistan will be used to strengthen democracy and fight terrorism.

"We would use that for the types of programs to strengthen democracy and civil society, to counter terrorism and extremism, to support economic reforms and debt management," the spokesman said.

"We have made similar budget requests and similar budget authority – received similar budget authority from Congress in the past and made – and invested, used the funds that were appropriated by Congress to invest in our partnership with Pakistan. And we would use funds, should they be appropriated by Congress, to invest in similar programs as we have in this fiscal year and in previous ones," he added.