The US government is learning a lesson from its relations with the Pakistani government. Only a fool does not learn a lesson from his mistakes. For many years, the US has been a piggy bank for the Pakistani government: easy money in the name of the war on terror.

Time has taught us that, with or without the US in their side, Pakistan has enormous internal challenges in fighting terrorism. Pakistan has its own Taliban. The news that the Obama administration held $800 million in aid to Pakistan is a sign that things will never be the same after the death of Osama Bin Laden. It is clear that Osama was a the goose that laid the golden egg for the Pakistanis. As long as Osama was on the run, more money flowed from the US.

The truth is that Osama was killed by the US commandos, without the help of Pakistan. So, the question is, what does the US have to gain from this cooperation? $800 million is insignificant compared to billions of military aid that the US gives to Pakistan.

The US government, which is still trying to figure out how to cut its spending, should consider cutting aid to Pakistan and attaching strings to the money. As the Baoule of Ivory Coast say, “A bad wound deserves strong medicine.”