[ad_1]
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday criticized US President Donald Trump after he said Pakistan would do "nothing" for the United States, despite billions of dollars worth 39, help in the United States.
Archive photo: Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan expressing at the opening ceremony of China's first International Import Exhibition in Shanghai, China, November 5, 2018. REUTERS / Aly Song / Pool
The frictions threaten to further exacerbate the already fragile relations between Islamabad and Washington, occasional allies who have clashed several times over the war in Afghanistan and alleged support of Pakistan to Islamist militants.
Khan, who took power in August and who is known for his fierce anti-American rhetoric, said in a series of tweets that "the record must be clear about Mr. Trump's tirade against Pakistan "this weekend.
Trump, in an interview with Fox News TV on Sunday, defended any help in Islamabad and also suggested Pakistani authorities know where Osama bin Laden was before his assassination by US troops at a police station. raid in Pakistan in 2011.
Pakistan denies supporting Afghan Taliban insurgents at war against US-backed troops in Afghanistan. Islamabad has also consistently rejected claims made by officials of former al Qaeda leader bin Laden.
"Instead of making Pakistan a scapegoat for their failures, the United States should make a serious assessment of why, despite 140,000 NATO soldiers, 250,000 Afghan soldiers and 40,000 Afghans have been killed. "One billion dollars spent on the war in Afghanistan, the Taliban are stronger today than before," Khan said. .
Trump, in a pre-recorded interview, said that bin Laden lived in "a beautiful mansion" in Pakistan next to a military academy and that "everyone in Pakistan knew that he was there ".
"And we give Pakistan $ 1.3 billion a year. … (Bin Laden) lived in Pakistan, we support Pakistan, we give them $ 1.3 billion a year – which we do not give them anymore, by the way. I ended the discussion because they are doing nothing for us, they are doing nothing for us. "
Khan said Pakistan was hit hardest by the US war on terror, which targeted mainly militants straddling the Afghan-Pakistani tribal belt.
"No Pakistanis were involved in the September 11 attacks, but Pak decided to participate in the US war on terror," Khan said. "Pakistan has killed 75,000 people in this war and more than $ 123 billion has been lost to the economy. The "help" of the United States was $ 20 billion. "
Khan also stressed that Pakistan continues to provide its roads and airspace for the resupply of more than 10,000 US troops currently based in Afghanistan.
"Can Mr. Trump name another ally who made such sacrifices?"
