Islamabad Confirms US Suspended Pakistani Military Training Aid

Sumaira FH Published August 17, 2018 | 05:11 PM

Pakistani Foreign Ministry officially confirmed on Friday that Washington had stopped training Pakistani military personnel in accordance with a January decision to suspend US financial assistance for Islamabad's security sector

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 17th August, 2018) The Pakistani Foreign Ministry officially confirmed on Friday that Washington had stopped training Pakistani military personnel in accordance with a January decision to suspend US financial assistance for Islamabad's security sector.

In January, the US State Department announced that it was canceling security aid to Pakistan, including the delivery of military equipment. This followed US President Donald Trump's pledges to stop providing aid to the South Asian country over its failure to efficiently contribute to the fight against terrorism. Trump accused Islamabad of providing "safe haven to the terrorists," which Pakistan, in turn, denied.

"The US has been provided training to Pakistan military officials under a specific programme - International Military education and Training (IMET) - for the last many years.

.. However, as of January this year, all security assistance to Pakistan was suspended," the ministry's spokesman, Muhammad Faisal, said, as quoted by the Express Tribune newspaper.

According to Faisal, "both countries are engaged to resolve all issues."

Faisal's statement followed media reports about the US administration excluding Pakistani servicemen from training and educational programs.

The IMET student exchange program, established in 1976, aims at providing security assistance to different nations, namely, by inviting foreign students to US military schools.