Pakistan Summons US Charge d'Affaires in Protest Against Trump's Criticism

Following the remarks of the US President criticizing Pakistan's role in the fight against terrorism and the issue of Osama bin Laden's killing, Pakistan summoned the US chargé d'affaires in Islamabad on Tuesday, November 20. Donald Trump's statements in recent days have provoked anger among Pakistani officials, including Prime Minister Imran Khan. The Pakistani Foreign Ministry announced that it summoned the US chargé d'affaires to warn him that Trump's 'baseless accusations' could seriously harm the peace process in Afghanistan. Over the weekend, Trump stated in an interview that Pakistan, despite receiving billions of dollars in US aid, has done 'nothing' for the United States and accused Pakistani officials of knowing the hiding place of Osama bin Laden, the former leader of al-Qaeda, without informing the US. Following this, Trump tweeted on Monday, saying: 'We will no longer pay billions of dollars to Pakistan, because they take our money and do nothing for us, the prime example being the case of bin Laden and another example being Afghanistan. They [the Pakistanis] are one of many countries that take from the United States without giving anything back. This situation is coming to an end.' In response to these remarks, Imran Khan tweeted: 'Trump's false claims and insults are adding salt to the wounds that Pakistan has suffered in the US war against terrorism, wounds that include human losses, economic costs, and instability. He should educate himself on historical facts. Pakistan has suffered enough for the US war. Now we will do what is right for our people and our interests.' Khan added that compared to the human and financial losses Pakistan has incurred in the 'war on terror,' US aid has been 'insignificant.' Pakistan claims to have conducted military operations multiple times to expel extremist Islamist militants from its territory, and since 2001, more than 17,000 Pakistanis have died in the 'battle against terrorism.' The US alleges that Pakistan has not done much in this regard and that senior commanders of the Afghan Taliban continue to reside in Pakistan 'and are planning attacks on American soldiers and officials and undermining peace and stability in Afghanistan.' On Tuesday, Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi announced that he had summoned Paul Jones, the US chargé d'affaires, to express the country's 'strong protest' against 'baseless and unfounded accusations made against Pakistan.' Qureshi also stated regarding the issue of Osama bin Laden: 'It was Pakistan's intelligence cooperation that provided the lead to find bin Laden.' The al-Qaeda leader was killed in 2011 during Barack Obama's presidency by US special forces in Abbottabad, located 50 kilometers from Islamabad, Pakistan's capital. Hours after some US officials accused Pakistan's intelligence agency of harboring Osama bin Laden and heavily criticized Islamabad for hiding the al-Qaeda leader, then-President Asif Ali Zardari rejected these claims.