Three days after US President Donald Trump’s tweet on Pakistan, Washington announced Thursday that it would suspend nearly all security assistance to Pakistan, which could affect at least $1.3 billion USD in annual aid, according to a report by New York Times.
Three days ago, Trump complained on Twitter that Pakistan had “given us nothing but lies and deceit” and accused it of providing “safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan.”
The US State Department announced the decision, saying it reflected the Trump administration's frustration that Pakistan has not done more against the militant groups, which have long used sanctuaries in Pakistan to launch attacks against Afghan and foreign forces in Afghanistan.
The department declined to say exactly how much aid would be suspended, Reuters reported.
The department said the numbers were still being calculated and included funding from both the State and Defense departments.
According to Reuters report, US officials said two main categories of aid are affected: foreign military financing (FMF), which funds purchases of US military hardware, training and services, and coalition support funds (CSF), which reimburse Pakistan for counter-terrorism operations.
The officials said they could make exceptions for money that went to critical US national security priorities.
The United States gives Pakistan $255 million a year in FMF, which falls under the State Department's authority, Reuters report said. For fiscal year 2017, which ended on Sept. 30, 2017, it has authorized up to $900 million in CSF, which falls under Pentagon authority.
US officials told reporters that the suspension did not affect civilian aid to Pakistan and that the money could go through if Islamabad took decisive action against the militant groups.
“Our hope is that they will see this as a further indication of this administration's immense frustration with the trajectory of our relationship and that they need to be serious about taking the steps we have asked in order to put it on more solid footing," a senior State Department official told reporters, as quoted by Reuters.
“We are hoping that Pakistan will see this as an incentive, not a punishment," he added.
After Trump tweet, Director-General of Inter-Services Public Relations of Pakistan, Major General Asif Ghafoor, said on Wednesday that if the US takes any action against Pakistan's national security, a response will be given in line with the public's expectations.
He said the effects of Pakistan’s operations against the Haqqani network cannot be visible immediately.
Former US ambassador to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad in his article published Wednesday said that "since 9/11, Pakistan has consistently played a double game". He suggests that it is the time for Washington to end Pakistan's double games.