PAKISTAN/TERRORISM/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump has defended his administration’s decision to cut off aid to Pakistan, berating the country for not doing ‘a damn thing for us.’ In an interview with Fox News’ Chris Wallace that aired on Sunday [11-18-18], Trump pointed to Osama bin Laden’s presence in Pakistan as proof. On Monday [11-19-18], the country’s prime minister, Imran Khan, fired back, telling the president on Twitter that he ‘needs to be informed about historical facts.’ In a series of tweets, Khan said that U.S. aid to Pakistan was a ‘miniscule’ $20 billion, while the country lost 75,000 people and more than $123 billion fighting the ‘US War on Terror.’ He also pointed to the supply routes Pakistan provides to American forces. ‘Can Mr Trump name another ally that gave such sacrifices?’ The president responded with tweets of his own, reiterating that Pakistan is one of many nations that took money from the United States but gave nothing in return. The alliance between the United States and Pakistan has always been tenuous, but tensions have increased since Trump’s election. The administration suspended most of its military aid to Pakistan at the beginning of this year for its failure to act against terrorist groups.”
–Alena Sadiq, “Trump and Pakistani leader face off on Twitter,” Politico, November 19, 2018 5:58 pm