US tells Pakistan to accept Indian aid

The Obama administration has urged Pakistan to accept India's aid offer, including an initial $5 million, even as elements in the flood-ravaged country have launched a campaign to blame India, the United States, and Afghanistan for the calamity.

Amid mounting international attention and concern for Pakistan's future in the face of the tragedy, US officials on Wednesday called on Islamabad to abjure politics and accept India's help. Pakistan has sat on the Indian offer saying it is under consideration, even as it is begging for international aid.

"I think the priority is to use offers of assistance to help the Pakistani people, so we would encourage government of Pakistan to accept that (Indian) offer," Frank Ruggiero, deputy special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan said on Wednesday.

Separately, state department spokesman P J Crowley said, "In terms of responding to a disaster, politics should play no role. You have a country (India) that's willing to help (Pakistan), and ... we expect that Pakistan will accept."

Their remarks came amid a rash of reports in the Pakistani media blaming mainly India for the massive floods, which they say happened because New Delhi had deliberately diverted waters from dams in Jammu and Kashmir, and from the ones it "controls in Afghanistan''.

Some reports also charged that US was manipulating weather patterns over Pakistan. US officials dismissed the idea with incredulity.