WASHINGTON, Dec 18: The US House of Representatives has passed a $785 million aid package for Pakistan for the fiscal 2008 despite its reservations over the state of emergency imposed on Nov 3.

The US Senate is also expected to approve the package, which includes $300 million of military assistance, by Tuesday evening.

The other major item on the approved list is that of $350 million for economic support fund.

The package for Pakistan includes $50.9 million of development assistance, $39.8 million for child survival and health, $10.3 for anti-terrorism activities, $32 million for anti-narcotics efforts, and $2 million for training and education of military officers in the United States.

This is part of a five-year $3.5 billion package signed in June 2003, when President Pervez Musharraf visited the Camp David presidential resort for a meeting with President George W. Bush.

The bill approved by the House also includes a provision authorising the US administration to provide assistance to build the capacity of Pakistan’s other security forces critical to the success of counter-terrorist operations.

These include the Frontier Corps and other internal security forces specifically responsible for counter-terrorism operations. Forces responsible for border protection and interdiction, including the forces that guard coastal waters, will also benefit from this provision.

Several powerful lawmakers had suggested conditioning US aid to the return of democracy in the country.

The House and the Senate are separately considering some resolutions on this issue. One resolution calls for conditioning US military assistance to “demonstrable progress by the government of Pakistan in achieving certain objectives” towards the restoration of full democracy.

But the Bush administration warned the lawmakers not to attach conditions to US assistance to Pakistan.

BIDEN’S CALL TO MUSHARRAF: Earlier, a leading presidential candidate and chairman of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Joseph R. Biden telephoned President Pervez Musharraf, urging him to restore an independent judiciary and a free media.

A statement issued by his office quoted him as telling the president that while US lawmakers appreciated his decisions to quit the army and lift emergency, they believed it was not enough.