Aid, Politics and the War of Narratives in the Us-Pakistan Relations: A Case Study of Kerry Lugar Berman ACT

This book analyses the aid, politics and the war of narratives between the US and Pakistan under the Kerry Lugar Berman Act (2009-2013), using the security-development nexus as a framing discourse and taking a de-colonial approach to the subject.

The book explores the politics of the US foreign aid to Pakistan with regard to the issues of 'sovereignty' and 'agency' to analyze the notions of aid, power and narratives and pre-conceived notions on power and agency of the recipient countries in this asymmetrical US-Pakistan relation. Based on primary interviews and extensive data analysis of US foreign aid datasets, the book specifically argues that foreign aid is based under the hubris of security-development nexus, which encourages a dialectical power struggle between the US and Pakistan, and between the civil and military actors inside Pakistan that use the indivisibility of security and development to advance their strategic interests over each other.

This book is a timely analysis given the context of Afghan peace process and the central role of the US and Pakistan. Interdisciplinary and relevant to academic and policy debates, this book will be of interest to researchers in the field of Development Studies, International Relations, Policy Studies, Area Studies, in particular South Asian Politics.