David Cameron comments hindered Pakistan aid, says ambassador

 Guardian

Abdullah Hussain Haroon tells Radio 4 that prime minister's words have added to Pakistan's 'suffering'

Alexandra Topping

The rift between Britain and Pakistan showed signs of reopening last night after Pakistan's ambassador to the UN claimed that comments by David Cameron in which he said Pakistan must not look "both ways" on terrorism had affected its efforts to raise funds for its flood-stricken people.

Days after the Pakistani president, Asif Ali Zardari, stood with Cameron at Chequers and declared the two countries shared an "unbreakable relationship", Abdullah Hussain Haroon told BBC Radio 4's The World Tonight that the prime minister's comments had added to Pakistan's "suffering".

Asked if disputes such as the one sparked by Cameron's comments had caused Pakistan to suffer, he said: "Yes, indeed Pakistan has suffered because of what Mr Cameron has said, because the British people will listen to their prime minister."

He argued that a negative perception of Pakistan could be preventing the public from giving more aid. "The world has been slow," said Haroon. "It could be because of donor fatigue in terms of what's happening around the world, but also I don't think the international press, until now, has portrayed what is happening."

If more aid was not forthcoming, he warned of a risk that the Taliban could flourish in areas where they had previously been defeated by the Pakistani army. "The Taliban has been [...] flushed out [and] are now running back to these areas and trying to reinvest themselves into them," he said.

"There is going to be a fight over who helps who at this grievous time, and if the international community does not take this as its responsibility [...] I'm afraid there will be repercussions much beyond what is happening just now."

Cameron caused anger in Islamabad two weeks ago when he said during a trip to India that elements in Pakistan should not be allowed to "promote the export of terror, whether to India, whether to Afghanistan or to anywhere else in the world".

His remarks followed the leaking of US military documents on the Wikileaks website in which Pakistani intelligence was accused of secretly helping the Taliban.