US wants its Pakistan aid to reach more civilians

The U.S. ambassador to Pakistan says the Obama administration aims to increase the proportion of aid it provides for the country's civilian rather than military needs, according to AP. Ambassador Cameron Munter issued a blunt assessment Monday of a "rough year" in U.S.-Pakistan relations, roiled by the killing by U.S. forces' clandestine raid in May that killed Osama bin Laden. He said military training and intelligence sharing efforts had gone backward but maintained that the two countries still recognized the need to work together in counterterrorism. Munter said last year about $2 billion of U.S. assistance had gone to the military and $1.5 billion for civilian needs. He said increasing the portion that goes for civilian projects would support Washington's political goal of backing Pakistan's civilian government.