It's the least we can do after Zardari's government - or the military, to be accurate - kicked out our special forces trainers, not to mention recent revelations about terrorists hiding in their midst.

The total amounts suspended or canceled comes to about $800 million:

This aid includes about $300 million to reimburse Pakistan for some of the costs of deploying more than 100,000 soldiers along the Afghan border to combat terrorism, as well as hundreds of millions of dollars in training assistance and military hardware, according to half a dozen Congressional, Pentagon and other administration officials who were granted anonymity to discuss the politically delicate matter.

Some of the curtailed aid is equipment that the United States wants to send but Pakistan now refuses to accept, like rifles, ammunition, body armor and bomb-disposal gear that were withdrawn or held up after Pakistan ordered more than 100 Army Special Forces trainers to leave the country in recent weeks.

Some is equipment, such as radios, night-vision goggles and helicopter spare parts, which cannot be set up, certified or used for training because Pakistan has denied visas to the American personnel needed to operate the equipment, two senior Pentagon officials said.

And some is assistance like the reimbursements for troop costs, which is being reviewed in light of questions about Pakistan's commitment to carry out counterterrorism operations. For example, the United States recently provided Pakistan with information about suspected bomb-making factories, only to have the insurgents vanish before Pakistani security forces arrived a few days later.

This is the least we can do to retaliate while avoiding a total break. Suffice it to say that our relations with the Pakistani military is deteriorating and since they pretty much run the country, our relations with the civilian government is getting worse too. President Zardari would probably like to increase cooperation with the US but we have embarrassed the military with our raid to kill bin Laden, and our charges that the ISI is lousy with terrorist-sympathizing officers. 

Since Zardari wants to keep his job - and his head - will will accede to the military's demands.