Pakistan rejects 'peanuts' in American military aid

March 6, 1980

Pakistan has officially rejected the $400 million aid package the United States offered to counter the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, it was disclosed Wednesday.

The aid package, proposed by President Carter in January, consisted of $200 million for military equipment on credit and $200 million in economic aid, to be spread over a period of 18 months.Mr. Carter also offered to strengthen the security commitment outlined in the 1959 US-Pakistani pact. At the time, Pakistan's President, Muhammad Zia al-Haq, dismissed the offer as "peanuts."