Just a day after President Donald Trump’s tough talk against Pakistan, his Secretary of State has warned Islamabad that it could lose American aid as well as its status as a major non-NATO alliance partner if it did not go the whole hog against the terror sanctuaries on its soil.
“Obviously, we have some leverage that’s been discussed in terms of the amount of aid and military assistance we give them, their status as a non-NATO alliance partner,” Secretary Rex Tillerson told reporters on Tuesday, adding grimly: “All of that can be put on the table.”
Tillerson’s remarks came even as several lawmakers seized on Trump’s blunt warning and pushed for action to hold Islamabad to account, with at least one of them - Republican Congressman Ted Poe - demanding that the US designate Pakistan as a “State sponsor of terrorism”.
Demands have also been raised that the US carry out unilateral strikes against the terror safe havens inside Pakistan. Quizzed on this, Tillerson declined a direct answer, but pointedly stated that President Trump “has been clear that we are going to protect American troops and servicemen”.
“We are going to attack terrorists wherever they live, and we have put people on notice that if you are harbouring and providing safe haven to terrorists, be warned. Be forewarned,” Tillerson said.
“We’re going to engage with those who are providing safe haven and ask them to change what they’re doing and help us help them,” he said, adding that the Pakistani people will be the biggest beneficiaries of peace and stability in Afghanistan.
Separately, Defence Secretary James Mattis, currently on a trip to the Middle East, held out the possibility of the US going beyond the rhetoric and acting against Islamabad. “You will just have to watch it unfold in order to really get the answer to it,” he told reporters travelling with him. Mattis has already directed the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to make preparations to carry out Trump’s new strategy on Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Tillerson, who had spoken with Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi ahead of Trump’s speech, told a questioner that the US would be engaging in “a very serious and thorough way as to our expectations and the conditions that go with that”.
“And all of those things you just listed (aid, non-NATO ally status) are on the table for discussion if, in fact, they are unwilling to change their posture or change their approach to how they’re dealing with the numerous terrorist organizations that find safe haven inside of Pakistan,” he said.
The US stands ready to help Pakistan address terrorist organizations inside of their country, but then “they must adopt a different approach themselves”, said Tillerson, who spoke of the erosion in trust because of Islamabad continuing to provide a safe haven to terror outfits that plot and carry out attacks against US servicemen.
“We are going to be conditioning our support for Pakistan and our relationship with them on them delivering results in this area. We want to work with Pakistan in a positive way, but they must change their approach,” he said.
On Capitol Hill, a legislation from Congressman Poe to designate Pakistan a State sponsor of terrorism has been pending for quite some time.
“President Trump’s speech marked a positive shift in US policy, but it must not be limited only to words. If Pakistan does not stop aiding terrorists with American blood on their hands we must cut all aid to Islamabad, revoke their privileged status as a major non-NATO ally, and designate Pakistan a state sponsor of terrorism,” Poe said in a statement.
The Texas lawmaker commented that despite its “ongoing treachery”, Pakistan continued to be among the leading recipients of US foreign assistance since 9/11, adding: “This must stop. If we want to stabilize Afghanistan, we must deal first with Pakistan.”
Senator John Cornyn, Republican co-Chair of the Senate Indian Caucus, was critical of the previous Barack Obama administration for not having held Pakistan to account for providing sanctuary to terrorists. Several other lawmakers, including Congressmen Kevin Cramer, Drew Ferguson and Tom Graves, pressed for action to bring Pakistan to account.