US suspends $1.1 bn security aid to Pakistan

In a massive blow to Pakistan, the United States has suspended all security aid, estimated at over $1.15 billion, in retaliation for Islamabad’s failure to crack down on terrorist groups that continue to enjoy a safe haven on its soil.

After repeated warnings in recent months, climaxed by President Donald Trump’s stinging New Year Day attack on Islamabad’s “lies and deceit”, his administration announced on Thursday that it would freeze for now all its security aid to Pakistan.

Although the precise quantum was not mentioned, the frozen aid reportedly includes $900 million under the “Coalition Support Funds” head, and $255 million under the “Foreign Military Financing” head.

“No partnership can survive a country’s harbouring of militants and terrorists who target US service members and officials,” State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said, referring to the periodic attacks launched by Pakistan-based Afghan Taliban and Haqqani network on US forces in Afghanistan.

While announcing the aid suspension, Nauert, however, signalled that Washington would consider its resumption as and when Islamabad takes “decisive action” against the terrorist outfits.

“Today we can confirm that we are suspending national security assistance to Pakistan at this time until the Pakistani Government takes decisive action against groups, including the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani network,” Nauert said, adding, “We consider them to be destabilising the region and also targeting US personnel.”

It was a double whammy for Islamabad on Thursday as the State Department also placed Pakistan on a “Special Watch List” because of its “severe violations of religious freedom”, along with redesignating 10 other countries of particular concern on this score.

President Trump had set the stage for the stringent punitive action on January 1, when he tweeted, “The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars 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!”

“We will not be delivering military equipment or transfer security related funds to Pakistan unless it is required by law,” Nauert said while responding to questions at her briefing. “Pakistan has the ability to get this money back in the future, but they have to take decisive action,” she said in reply to another question.

At the same time, in an apparently conciliatory tone, Nauert said, “The United States stands ready to work with Pakistan in combating all terrorists without distinction.” Washington, she added, hopes “to be able to renew and deepen our bilateral security relationship when Pakistan demonstrates its willingness to aggressively confront the Afghan Taliban, the Haqqani network and other terrorist and militant groups that operate from within its country”.

She said the US decision should not have come as a surprise to Pakistan since “the President, Secretary Tillerson, and Secretary Mattis have all had conversations with Pakistani officials alerting them to our concerns that Pakistan has not done enough to…round up terrorist and militant groups operating from within Pakistan”.

“We’ve had a series of discussions with Pakistan about that, telling Pakistan that they need to take more decisive action,” she said.

Nauert said the US decision had nothing to do with Pakistan’s failure to act against Lashkar-e-Tayyeba founder and Mumbai attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed, even while she reiterated Washingon’s concern over Saeed’s recent release from house arrest.

At the Pentagon, Defence spokesman Patrick Evans was quoted by CNN as saying that the freeze would apply to $900 million under the Coalition Support Funds for 2017. “Security assistance funding and pending deliveries will be frozen but not canceled, as we continue to hope Pakistan will take the decisive action against terrorist and militant groups that we seek,” Evans said.