Trump castigates Pak for providing safe havens to terrorists

United States President Donald Trump has, for the first time, openly castigated Pakistan for providing safe havens to terrorists.

Trump, in a strongly-worded tweet, said America had been 'foolishly' providing military aid to Pakistan for 15 years, but in return, it has only received 'lies and deceit.'

"The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years, and they have given us nothing but lies & deceit, thinking of our leaders as fools. They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help. No more!" Trump posted on the micro-blogging site, on Monday.

The tweet comes in the wake of the United Nations-designated terrorist, Hafiz Saeed, looking to contest the 2018 general elections in Pakistan and thereby, forming a party - by the name of Milli Muslim League (MML).

Saeed was recently released from house arrest after a Pakistani court cited lack of evidence against him in the 26/11 Mumbai attack case.

Earlier on December 30 too, a report emerged that the United States was considering to withhold a USD 255-million aid to Islamabad due to Pakistan's inability to destroy terror safe havens.

According to a New York Times report, the growing disagreement between the two countries and Pakistan's inability to neutralise the terrorist networks operating from its soil was possibly affecting the decision in providing financial aid to the Islamabad.

The report cited the major disappointment for the US was Pakistan's rejection of its demand of access to one of the abductors involved in the kidnapping of the Canadian-American family.

The US had, earlier, claimed that more than $33 billion in aid had been provided to Pakistan since 2002.

Although the volume of annual US assistance to Pakistan stands at $1.1 billion, hundreds of millions of dollars are withheld every year under different restrictions imposed since 2011, when relations between the two countries began to deteriorate after Osama bin Laden was found in Abbottabad.

India has also, time and again, protested against Pakistan for harbouring Saeed - wanted for allegedly plotting the Mumbai attacks that took place on November 26, 2008.