Trump could freeze US$2 bln aid over militant havens
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump’s freeze on aid to Pakistan could be worth almost two billion dollars, a senior US administration official said on Friday – substantially more than first thought.
The move – designed to force Pakistan’s military and intelligence apparatus to cut support for the Taliban and other Islamist groups – will include both US military assistance and Afghanistan coalition funding to Islamabad.
It is “approximately two billion worth of equipment and coalition support funding that is in play,” the senior official said on condition of anonymity.
The source added that “all options are on the table” when it comes to further moves, including stripping Pakistan of its status as a “major non-Nato ally” or calling in vital IMF loans.
After more than a decade of simmering US anger at Islamabad’s links with the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani network – a Taliban affiliate – the Trump administration is trying to draw a line in the sand.
“The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than US$33 billion in aid over the last 15 years, and they have given us nothing but lies deceit, thinking of our leaders as fools,” Trump tweeted on New Year’s Day.
“They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help. No more!”
On the hook is almost US$1 billion of US military equipment that has allowed Pakistan access to advanced military technology, but also funding that is meant to pay Pakistan for helping to get US and Nato materiel into Afghanistan.
Analysts believe the United States is highly unlikely to freeze all that funding, which, according to the source, totals US$1.9 billion.
US officials have already indicated that there could be “exemptions” for programmes deemed vital to US national security – likely including cash for keeping Pakistan’s nuclear weapons safe.
But nevertheless, the total figure of US$1.9 billion is much higher than first indicated and is a signal of Washington’s seriousness.
“We are still working with Pakistan and we would restore the aid if we see decisive movements against the terrorists who are as much of a threat against Pakistan as they are against us,” said Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.
Pakistan has fought fierce campaigns against homegrown Islamist groups, and says it has lost thousands of lives and spent billions of dollars in its long war on extremism.
But US officials accuse Islamabad of ignoring or even collaborating with groups that attack Afghanistan from safe havens along the border between the two countries.
The White House believes that Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence agency and other military bodies have long helped fund and arm the Taliban for ideological reasons, but also to counter rising Indian influence in Afghanistan.
It also believes that a Pakistani crackdown could be pivotal in deciding the outcome of the war in Afghanistan – now entering its 17th year – by weakening the Taliban militarily and forcing the organisation to the negotiating table.
“Unless we deal with the Pakistan sanctuary issue, it will undermine all of our other efforts in Afghanistan,” the senior official said. “We can no longer accept Pakistan’s dual policies of fighting some terrorists while supporting others.” — AFP
The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than US$33 billion in aid over the last 15 years, and they have given us nothing but lies deceit, thinking of our leaders as fools.They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help. No more! — Donald Trump, US President’s tweet