Senate Unit Opposes Penalizing Pakistan

WASHINGTON — The Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted Thursday not to penalize Pakistan for what U.S. intelligence has reported to be a nearly successful drive to acquire nuclear weapons.

The 11-8 vote--with Democrats Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut and John F. Kerry of Massachusetts joining all nine committee Republicans--was interpreted on Capitol Hill as a powerful blow to efforts to withhold substantial amounts of U.S. aid from Pakistan. Foes of nuclear weapons proliferation considered the Senate committee a likely place to win a victory.

The House Foreign Affairs Committee had previously voted, as the Senate committee did Thursday, to warn Pakistan of U.S. concern about nuclear proliferation, but not to make any cuts for this reason in one of the largest U.S. aid programs.