The new Afghan war strategy unveiled by US President Barack Obama goes beyond “bullets and bombs” to a plan to overhaul international aid to Afghanistan and Pakistan. Dismissing past aid efforts as ill-organized and underfunded, it calls for a civilian surge in Afghanistan to match the military one as well as for a 7.5 billion dollar development plan and special economic zones for Pakistan. Obama urged Congress to approve 1.5 billion dollars in aid to the Pakistani people every year over the next five years, resources that will build schools, roads, and hospitals, and strengthen Pakistan’s democracy.