Pakistan fires back at Trump: US has given nothing but ‘invective & mistrust’

Pakistan fired back at President Trump on Monday, saying the U.S. has given it “nothing but invective & mistrust” after Trump lashed out at the country and threatened to withhold aid in an early morning tweet.

“[Pakistan] as anti-terror ally has given free to US: land & air communication, military bases & intel cooperation that decimated Al-Qaeda over last 16yrs, but they have given us nothing but invective & mistrust,” Pakistan’s defense minister, Khurram Dastgir Khan, said on Twitter.

“They overlook cross-border safe havens of terrorists who murder Pakistanis,” he added.

Pak as anti-terror ally has given free to US: land & air communication, military bases & intel cooperation that decimated Al-Qaeda over last 16yrs, but they have given us nothing but invective & mistrust. They overlook cross-border safe havens of terrorists who murder Pakistanis.

— Pak Minister Defence (@PakMnstrDefence) January 1, 2018

In his first tweet of 2018, Trump blasted Pakistan, saying its leaders have given the U.S. “nothing but lies & 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!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 1, 2018

{mosads}Last week, The New York Times reported that the Trump administration was considering withholding $225 million in aid from Pakistan over the country’s handling of terrorism.

In August, Trump unveiled a new U.S. strategy for the war in Afghanistan aimed at defeating the Taliban and the Haqqani network, an affiliated group that operates in Pakistan.

Trump said then that Pakistan “gives safe haven to agents of chaos, violence and terror.” He also vowed the administration would be tougher on the country.