US BLOCKS $255 MILLION MILITARY AID TO PAKISTAN
PM Shahid Khaqan Abbasi goes into huddle with civilian and military leadership
WASHINGTON: The United States has suspended its USD 255 million military aid to Pakistan for now, the White House has confirmed, saying the fate of such assistance will depend on Islamabad’s response to terrorism on its soil. The confirmation comes on the same day when US President Donald Trump accused Pakistan of giving nothing to the US but “lies and deceit” and providing “safe haven” to terrorists in return for USD 33 billion aid over the last 15 years.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top leadership reacted angrily on Tuesday to President Donald Trump’s threat to cut off aid over the country’s counterterrorism efforts, saying the US leader’s accusations had damaged trust between the two countries.
Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi went into a huddle with the civilian and military leadership to frame a response to the allegations by Trump, who, in his first tweet of 2018, said the US had “foolishly” given $33 billion as aid to Pakistan and got “nothing but lies and deceit”.
The Foreign Office summoned US Ambassador David Hale on Monday night and lodged a protest. Foreign secretary Tehmina Janjua sought an explanation from the envoy over Trump’s tweet. The US embassy confirmed Hale was summoned to the foreign ministry at 9 pm.
Following a meeting of the National Security Council (NSC) chaired by Abbasi, an official statement said Trump’s allegations were “completely incomprehensible as they contradicted facts manifestly, struck with great insensitivity at the trust between (the) two nations built over generations, and negated the decades of sacrifices made by the Pakistani nation”.
The leaders contended that Pakistan had fought the war against terrorism with its own resources and at a great cost to the economy. The sacrifices made by Pakistan “could not be trivialised so heartlessly by pushing all of it behind a monetary value – and that too an imagined one”, the statement said.
Trump’s accusations were also puzzling because were in contrast to the “positive direction” of bilateral ties, it added.
Pakistan’s ambassador to the US was called to Islamabad for the meeting, which also reviewed Islamabad’s overall foreign policy. The meeting was attended by the chiefs of the three services and National Security Adviser Nasser Janjua.
Shortly before the meeting, the powerful military finalised its suggestions for Pakistan’s response during a Corps Commanders’ Conference chaired by army chief Gen Qamar Bajwa.
Pakistan’s parliament also convened a meeting of its committee on national security on Friday to discuss Trump’s threat.
Soon after Trump’s tweet, foreign minister Khawaja Asif responded by saying: “The US should hold its own people accountable for its failures in Afghanistan.”
He told a TV news channel, “We have already said ‘no more’ to America, so Trump’s ‘no more’ has no importance. We are ready to give all accounts for every single penny to America in public.”
Asif said the US is frustrated by its defeat in Afghanistan but Washington should still opt for the path of dialogue instead of using its military might.
Defence minister Khurram Dastgir Khan said Pakistan is fully capable of defending itself. Pakistan has extended unprecedented cooperation to the US in defeating al-Qaeda, he added.