With the US having cut military aid to Pakistan, and reports Friday suggesting the cuts are far larger than previously expected, Pakistani officials have issued statements heavily criticizing the US for its “counterproductive” approach to the region.
The official statement from the foreign ministry said the US had been acting with “arbitrary deadlines, unilateral pronouncements, and shifting goalposts” in relation to common threats. President Trump has accused Pakistan of being disloyal despite US aid provided to them over the decades of Afghan occupation.
Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif was even more frank about the problems, saying the US behaves as “a friend who always betrays,” adding the US doesn’t treat Pakistan like an ally.
Adding to the mounting aid cut, the US has added Pakistan to the religious freedom watchlist, accusing them of “severe violations.” Pakistan officials accused their sudden addition to the list of being politically motivated.
It likely is politically motivated, as such US often uses such lists to justify angry condemnations of international rivals, and President Trump has been extremely fond of piling on once he decides he’s hostile toward a nation.
There is a deeper truth to “the friend who always betrays.” The longer term problem is that the US had helped and encouraged Pakistan to support these very same people against the Soviets. Then the US changed sides. Pakistan was not free to follow that change, because the original idea was based on ethnic and political realities of Pakistan’s border region and internal politics, and its existential rivalry with India. So Pakistan did not betray. The US betrayed, and now complains that Pakistan cannot do the same. The US accepted that for a long time, because it understood the reality of Pakistan’s position.