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Washington told Islamabad that bringing defence and intelligence budgets under civilian oversight is crucial to enhance fiscal transparency.
The Pakistani government has no control over the Pakistan Army which is known for using Pakistani taxpayer money to encourage terrorism. (IMAGE: REUTERS)
The United States State Department instructed Pakistan to put its defence and intelligence budgets under parliamentary or civilian oversight. Washington suggested Islamabad take these steps to enhance fiscal accountability and transparency, Pakistani news agency Dawn said in a report.
The recommendation was included in the US Department of State’s 2025 Fiscal Transparency Report released Friday.
“The military and intelligence budgets were not subject to adequate parliamentary or civilian public oversight. Steps Pakistan could take to improve fiscal transparency include, making its executive budget proposal publicly available within a reasonable period,” the report said.
“The military and intelligence budgets were not subject to adequate parliamentary or civilian public oversight,” the report further stated.
The Pakistani newspaper highlighted that the US State Department suggested Islamabad to publish its executive budget proposal on time.
“It did not publish its executive budget proposal within a reasonable period. The government made only limited information on debt obligations, including major state-owned enterprise debt, publicly available,” the report said.
Shankhyaneel Sarkar is a senior subeditor at News18. He covers international affairs, where he focuses on breaking news to in-depth analyses. He has over five years of experience during which he has covered sev… Read More
Washington D.C., United States of America (USA)
September 21, 2025, 11:40 IST
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