Pakistan calls Trump’s tweet incomprehensible
It says he’s scapegoating for future
ISLAMABAD — Pakistan fired back Tuesday after President Donald Trump accused it of harboring terrorists, calling his New Year’s Day tweet “completely incomprehensible.”
The government summoned the U.S. ambassador to complain but stopped short of demands, made by protesting Islamic groups, to expel the diplomat.
The latest round of tit-fortat attacks between the two reluctant allies, neither of whom trusts the other, was ignited by Trump’s tweet on Monday. He said the U.S. had “foolishly” given Pakistan more than $33 billion in aid in the past 15 years and had gotten nothing in return but “lies & deceit.”
He also reiterated long-standing allegations that Pakistan gives “safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan.”
A statement issued after a National Security Committee meeting in Pakistan, which was attended by the country’s prime minister and the powerful army chief of staff, said the U.S. was
scapegoating Pakistan for its own failure to bring peace to Afghanistan after 16 years of war.
Pakistan and Afghanistan have long accused each other of harboring militants and have exchanged lists of terrorists they want apprehended and returned. Afghanistan has also provided what it says are the locations of militant camps inside Pakistan.
Pakistan denies supporting militants, pointing to its own war against extremist groups battling to overthrow the government. It blames the burgeoning insurgency in Afghanistan on runaway corruption, infighting that has paralyzed the Kabul government and record drug production. Pakistan says the chaos next door has spawned a proliferation of insurgent groups, including an Islamic State affiliate that has attacked it from hideouts in Afghanistan.
Pakistan’s military says it is working to build a fence along the Afghan border to curb infiltration. Officials also say that the estimated 2.7 million Afghan refugees living in Pakistan need to be repatriated because their presence in the country complicates action against Taliban militants. Pakistani officials say fighters from the Taliban and other groups are able to hide in settlement camps by mingling
with refugees.
Pakistani officials also insist that Trump has his figures wrong, taking aim at his claim that the United States had “foolishly” given it $33 billion since 2002.
“About $14 billion of that $33 billion was part of coalition support fund, which was compensation for services rendered,” Miftah Ismail, an adviser to the prime minister on finance, revenue and economic affairs, said in an interview. “Our billings were for $22 billion and we got only $14 billion. So we think the U.S. owes us $8 billion.”
The Trump administration is now considering whether to withhold $255 million in aid that it had delayed sending to Pakistan.
Ismail said the $255 million was a tiny fraction of Pakistan’s gross domestic product. “So, not a great deal of money.”
Pakistani leadership was also comforted by a strong expression of support from China.
Geng Shuang, the spokesman of China’s Foreign Ministry, said during a news conference Tuesday that “Pakistan has made great efforts and sacrifices for combating terrorism and made prominent contributions to the cause of international counterterrorism, and the international community should fully recognize this.”
The National Security Committee said in its statement that Pakistan is among
the countries hardest hit by terrorist attacks, having lost thousands of civilians and soldiers to the violence that has convulsed the region since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the U.S.
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters Tuesday to expect more details on specific actions against Pakistan over the next day or two.
“In terms of Pakistan, as I said, our goal is that we know that they can do more to stop terrorism and we want them to do that. That seems pretty simple,” she said. “In terms of specific actions, I think you’ll see some more details come out on that in next 24 to 48 hours, and we’ll be sure to keep you guys updated on that front.”
Defense analyst and retired Pakistani Gen. Talat Masood said vilifying Pakistan won’t bring stability to the region and belittles the losses Pakistan has suffered.
“The people of Pakistan, the government of Pakistan [have] been really seriously affected, and its consequences are felt every day,” Masood said. “America needs Pakistan. Without the help of Pakistan, it can never have stability in the region.”
Michael Kugelman, deputy director of the Wilson Center’s South Asia program, said that withholding aid to Pakistan is unlikely to deter Pakistani support for insurgents it sees as necessary to protect its security interests. Pakistan has long supported Islamic militants battling India in the disputed Kashmir region and has close ties to the Afghan Taliban.
“If the US truly had leverage, then one would have expected all the arms and money it’s sent to Pakistan over the years to have had happier results for the United States,” Kugelman said in an email interview. “It would take a whole lot on the part of Washington, and certainly more than threats and aid cuts, for Pakistan to agree to alter its immutable interests.”
The contradictions at the heart of U.S.-Pakistani relations were on display Tuesday when the Jamaat-ud-Dawa movement held protests in Lahore calling for the expulsion of the U.S. ambassador.
The group is headed by Hafiz Saeed, who also founded the militant group blamed for the 2008 attacks in Mumbai, India. The State Department has offered a $10 million reward for Saeed, who is wanted on terrorism charges, but he lives openly in Pakistan and frequently appears at public rallies.
Pakistan recently placed Saeed under house arrest for 11 months, but a court released him, citing lack of evidence.
Information for this article was contributed by Kathy Gannon, Zarar Khan and Jill Colvin of The Associated Press and by Salman Masood of The New York Times.