US withholds Pak security aid over terrorism concerns

Bloomberg

The US is suspending security assistance to Pakistan as the Trump administration escalates pressure on the government in Islamabad to prevent terrorist groups from finding safe harbor in the country.
The action announced is in addition to a decision disclosed earlier this week in which the National Security Council said the US will continue to withhold $255 million in military aid as the White House reviews Pakistan’s “level of cooperation” in fighting terrorism.
“This is something that should not come as a surprise to Pakistan,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told reporters. “They aren’t taking the steps that they need to take to fight terrorism.”
President Donald Trump foreshadowed the move in a New Year’s Day tweet in which he said the US has “foolishly” given more than $33 billion and received only “lies and deceit” in return. It reflected his increasing warnings that the US would cut off aid to those that oppose his policies, potentially including the Palestinian Authority and countries that vote against the US at the United Nations.
However, analysts doub-ted the move would alter Islamabad’s core strategic interests in the region, which includes keeping Indian
influence in neighbouring Afghanistan to a minimum. That’s especially the case given China’s more than $50 billion in infrastructure loans that continue to flow to Pakistan’s government.
Although withholding security aid may anger the Pakistani military establishment and prompt short-term measures to appease US officials, Chinese money is likely to fill the gap and
the Trump administration’s move is unlikely to alter Pakistan’s fundamental interests in the region, said Harsh Pant, an international relations professor at King’s
College London.
“In the short to medium term, there will be a lot of bluster but they will try and show that they are serious and perhaps there will be some short term results in the offing,” Pant said. “But the larger issue of whether this will fundamentally alter Pakistan’s policy towards Afghanistan or India, I very much doubt.”
The impact of the latest move against Pakistan was unclear.
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif said the US owes $9 billion for services including the use of Pakistan’s airspace and air bases, Karachi-based Geo television reported.