- Trump has asked Pakistan to ‘cease being safe haven for terrorists’: CIA director
The United States has told Pakistan what it must do if it wants Washington to resume paying out hundreds of millions of dollars in security aid, the Pentagon said on Monday.
“Our expectations are straightforward,” Pentagon spokesman Colonel Rob Manning told reporters.
“Taliban and Haqqani leadership and attack planners should no longer be able to find safe haven or conduct operations from Pakistani soil,” he said.
“The United States has conveyed to Pakistan specific and concrete steps that it could take,” Manning said.
“We stand ready to work with Pakistan to combat terrorist groups without distinction. We will continue these conversations with the Pakistani government in private.”
Pentagon officials are watching to see if Pakistan is going to retaliate against the US by cutting supply lines to US troops from its port at Karachi into Afghanistan.
So far, Manning said, there was no sign Islamabad was preparing to take that course of action. He stressed that the suspension of funding was not permanent “at this time” and that the money was not being diverted elsewhere.
Meanwhile, CIA Director Mike Pompeo, according to Moneycontrol.com, said that US President Donald Trump has asked Pakistan to “cease being a safe haven for terrorists” that threaten the US.
The US has suspended about USD 2 billion in security aid to Pakistan for allegedly “failing” to clamp down on the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani Network terror groups and dismantle their safe havens.
The freezing of all security assistance to Pakistan came after Trump in a New Year’s Day controversial tweet 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.
“We see the Pakistanis continuing to provide safe harbour, havens inside of Pakistan for terrorists who present risks to the United States of America,” Pompeo was quoted as saying by the CBS.
“We are doing our best to inform the Pakistanis that this is no longer going to be acceptable. So this conditioned aid, we have given them a chance. If they fix this problem, we are happy to continue to engage with them and be their partner. But if they don’t, we’re going to protect America,” Pompeo said.
“The president has made very clear that he needs Pakistan to cease being a safe haven for terrorists that threaten the United States of America, end, period, full stop,” Pompeo said, reflecting the stand taken by Trump.
The security assistance can be restored if Pakistan takes decisive actions against terrorists.