The US will no longer transfer certain pieces of military equipment and security-related financial assistance to the Pakistani armed forces in the wake of US accusations that Islamabad provides safe haven for terrorist groups who plot attacks on US troops in Afghanistan, APA reports quoting Sputnik.
"We can confirm that we are suspending security assistance to Pakistan at this time," said Heather Nauert, spokeswoman for the US State Department.
"The United States will not deliver military equipment or provide security assistance to Pakistan unless required by law," the spokeswoman added. Until the Pakistani government proves without a doubt decisive action has been taken against terrorist groups in Pakistan, the official said, Washington will consider Pakistan to be "destabilizing the region and also targeting US personnel."
There may be some exceptions to the new policy, however, the State Department said, without clarifying what particular funds or military equipment might be excluded from the policy.
Earlier in the week, Nikki Haley, US ambassador to the United Nations, announced that the US would cut funding to Pakistan by $255 million. "Pakistan has played a double game for years," Haley told reporters in New York on Tuesday. "They work with us at times, and they also harbor the terrorists who attack our troops in Afghanistan," the ambassador noted. "That game is not acceptable to this administration."
A US official said Thursday that in fact more than $255 million in aid would be suspended.
The policy change follows several tweets from US President Donald Trump blasting Pakistan.
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