Middle East Digest: May 14, 2008

Bureau of Public Affairs
May 14, 2008

The Middle East Digest provides text and audio from the Daily Press Briefing. For the full briefings, please visit http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/.

From the Daily Press Briefing of May 14, 2008:

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QUESTION: Tom, do you have anything new on the U.S. military aid for Lebanon?

MR. CASEY: Well, really not -- really not a lot. I certainly don't have any new announcements for you with regard to that. As you know, we have an ongoing military assistance program for Lebanon. That is something that has been active over the last couple of years and is designed to be able to help the Lebanese military carry out its mandate to provide security for the entirety of the country. I know that there are a number of things in the pipeline for them. And my understanding is we'll be trying to move some of those things through the pipeline in an expedited fashion. But in terms of overall levels of assistance, they remain the same. We have a very robust package of support for the Lebanese military and we intend to carry that out and give them the kind of help that they need to be able to, again, carry out their mission in support of the Lebanese people.

Kirit.

QUESTION: I'd just ask to follow up on the --

MR. CASEY: Yeah.

QUESTION: You mentioned that there was stuff in the pipeline. Can you elaborate exactly what's in the pipeline right now in terms of --

MR. CASEY: Well, I don't have any kind of specific listing for you. But if you look at what -- you know, what's been provided in the past or what's in the components of that -- that package, they include everything from vehicles and communications support to kinds of individual items, and as we saw this past summer, including some ammunition and other kinds of basic supplies.

QUESTION: So as far as (inaudible) you are -- you decided not to step up the aid, but to accelerate it?

MR. CASEY: Well, as I said, there's -- there is no new aid or new aid program for the Lebanese military. What we have is an ongoing program. And again, I think what we're doing now is expediting the shipment of some of the things that were already in the pipeline.

QUESTION: How many shipments, do you know?

MR. CASEY: I really don't. I don't know whether, you know, how many carloads or planeloads we're talking about here. Again, this is an ongoing multiyear effort, and I would view it in that context.

QUESTION: Did it start or it's going to start?

MR. CASEY: It's ongoing. I can't tell you specifically where any individual shipment is at this point.

QUESTION: Did you say which bits were being expedited?

MR. CASEY: No, I said that the ongoing program -- those things that are in the pipeline are being expedited. I really don't have a specific list I can go through with you or detail for you. I'm not sure that's in anybody's interest at this point.

QUESTION: Tom, quick. Do you have any comments on the new Prime Minister of Pakistan comments, a statement on Kashmir and he said that Kashmir is the core issue again between the relations between India and Pakistan, and it should be resolved and solved through the UN resolution, and now there is some kind of (inaudible) going on in the -- in Kashmir region. Any change in the U.S. policy or --

MR. CASEY: No, there’s no change in U.S. policy on this. Certainly, we believe that any differences between India and Pakistan are things that should be resolved through dialogue. And as you know, we’ve supported dialogue and discussion among the parties in the past, and we’ll continue to do so.