U.S. Cancels $300 Million In Aid To Pakistan

The U.S. military has announced it has made a final decision to cancel $300 million in aid to Pakistan that had been suspended due to Islamabad’s perceived lack of action against militants.

President Donald Trump suspended the so-called Coalition Support Funds (CSF), along with other aid to Pakistan, at the start of the year.

The Trump administration accuses Islamabad of harboring insurgents who are waging a 17-year-old war in neighboring Afghanistan, a charge Pakistan denies.

"Due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy, the remaining $300 [million] was reprogrammed," Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Kone Faulkner was quoted as saying by the Reuters news agency on September 1.

Faulkner said the Pentagon aimed to spend the $300 million on "other urgent priorities" if approved by Congress.

He said another $500 million in CSF was stripped by Congress from Pakistan earlier this year, to bring the total withheld to $800 million.

Based on reporting by Reuters