WASHINGTON, Feb. 17 (Xinhuanet) -- The United States has asked the Palestinian Authority to return 50 million dollars in unspent aid to prevent the money from going to a government that does not recognize Israel, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Friday.

    "In the interest of seeing that these funds not potentially make their way into the coffers of a future Palestinian government that might not recognize the right of Israel to exist ... we've asked for it to be returned. And the Palestinian Authority has agreed to return it," McCormack said.

    The unspent 50 million dollars, intended for infrastructure development, remained in the bank, the spokesman added.

    After winning the Jan. 25 parliamentary polls, Hamas, sworn to Israel's destruction, is expected to from the next Palestinian government soon.

    The United States and the European Union, which consider Hamas as terrorist organization, have threatened to curtail funding if Hamas does not commit itself to non-violence and recognize the Jewish state's right to exist. Enditem