White House stands by Trump’s ‘lies and deceit’ comment

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President Donald Trump speaks about the healthcare vote during a joint news conference with Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, July 25, 2017. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

WASHINGTON: The White House has said it stands by the comment of US President Donald Trump in which he said that Pakistan had given the US nothing but “lies and deceit” in return for USD 33 billion aid.

“Our position is firm: that we believe that withdrawing that aid is important,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders on Wednesday told the reporters at her daily news conference.

“Yes,” she said when asked if she stands by the comments the president made in the tweet.

“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!” Trump had said in his first tweet of the year.

Following his tweet, the Trump administration suspended about $2 billion in security assistance to Pakistan.