WASHINGTON: The Trump administration believes that it is time to trysomething new other than maintaining strategic patience and offeringinducements to Pakistan to stop it from continuing as a safe haven forterrorists from where they can attack the US and its allies, a seniorofficial said today.
He said the polices followed by the successive US administrations post 9/11with regard to Pakistan have not worked at all.
The United States is determined and committed to not allowing Pakistan tocontinue as a safe haven for terrorists from where they can attack the USand its allies, said the senior Trump administration official who spoke toa group of reporters on condition of anonymity.
“These (terror) sanctuaries really threaten stability in the region andthey continue to fuel the overall terrorism problem that we’re facing,” hesaid.
Noting that the “previous administrations have tried to exercise what theymight call strategic patience or offering inducements like theKerry-Lugar-Berman bill which gave billions of dollars to Pakistan”, theofficial said, stressing that none of it has worked so far.
Terrorists continue to operate freely inside Pakistan and there is arelationship between terrorist organisations and the Pakistaniestablishment, he said.
“This administration believes it’s time to try something different. And webelieve we owe it to the Americans in harm’s way in Afghanistan. We simplycannot ignore the terror sanctuaries (in Pakistan) if we’re going to makeprogress in Afghanistan,” he said, adding that “the president has been veryclear about his commitment to stabilising Afghanistan”.
Last week, the Trump administration suspended approximately $2 billion insecurity assistance to Pakistan, resulting in an outrage from Islamabad.Pakistan’s Foreign Minister, in an interview to The Wall Street Journal,had said that America was no longer an ally of Pakistan.
About President Donald Trump’s comprehensive South Asia strategy forregional diplomacy announced in August last year, the official said, “Itlooked at India-Pakistan relations, encouraging better ties between the twocountries and reducing tensions between them”.
The policy is not about looking at Pakistan through the lens ofAfghanistan, but it is about looking at the entire region and the future ofthe United States, he said.
“9/11 attacks you know had their roots in this region. We’ve invested a lotof blood and treasure in Afghanistan. We are committed to not allowing theTaliban to dominate Afghanistan and we are committed to not allowingAfghanistan or Pakistan to become a safe haven from which terrorists canattack the US and its allies,” the official said.
“So, I wouldn’t classify it is looking at Pakistan through the Afghanistanlens. I think that’s too narrow a viewpoint. I think this is about theregion and the future of the region. And the fact that these continuedsanctuaries really threaten stability in the region and they continue tofuel the overall terrorism problem that we’re facing,” he said.