Published 17:30 IST, September 4th 2019
Former US Pentagon chief labels Pakistan 'the most dangerous country'
Jim Mattis, the former US Defence Secretary labelled Pakistan as the most dangerous country that he has dealt with in his long spanning Pentagon career.
James Mattis, the former US Defence Secretary labelled Pakistan as the most dangerous country that he dealt with in his long spanning Pentagon career, citing the level of radicalization of its society and nuclear weapons “falling into the hands of terrorists breeding in their midst.”
Through his autobiography ‘Call Sign Chaos’ that hits the stand on Tuesday, the former US Defence Secretary said, “Off all the countries I’ve dealt with, I consider Pakistan to be the most dangerous, because of the radicalization of the society and the availability of nuclear weapons.”
Affirming the breeding of terrorists amid the Pakistani leadership, James Mattis said, “We can’t have the fastest-growing nuclear arsenal in the world falling into the hands of the terrorists breeding in their midst. The result would be disastrous.”
The former member of US President Donald Trump’s administration lambasted Islamabad for viewing geopolitics “through the prism of its hostility towards India.” James Mattis also opined that a similar case was noted for Afghanistan’s foreign policy, wherein Pakistan military wanted Kabul to be “resistant” of New Delhi’s influence.
The former Pentagon chief said, “The Pakistan military wanted a friendly government in Kabul that was resistant to Indian influence.” In a veiled attack to Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan, Mattis said, “they don’t have leaders who care about their future.”
Despite unilateral attempts by Pakistan Imran Khan to reset bilateral relations with the United States by his Washington visit in Junly and by persuading the Taliban in pushing the Afghan-US deal to end the 18-year-old war, the former US Defence Secretary claimed how the US-Pakistan narrative is stained with distrust and divisions.
He said, “We could manage our problems with Pakistan, but our divisions were too deep, and trust too shallow, to resolve them.” Further claiming this to be the reason for which the former US President Barack Obama conducted midnight raids in Abbottabad to kill Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in May 2011, without informing the Pakistan administration.
“And that is the state of our relationship to this day,” the former US Defence Secretary wrote.
Donald Trump over Osama bin Laden to Pakistan
Launching a solid feud on social media back on 19 November 2018, the US President Donald Trump brought to everyone’s notice how he pointed Bin Laden out before the Twin Tower attack and blamed Pakistan for letting him live under their nose inside the country. He also went ahead to call the Pakistan government ‘fools.’
Donald Trump had proclaimed how the United States refuses to pay billions to India’s neighbour as there is nothing in return. Claiming Pakistan to be one of those countries who gave nothing in return, even cited Osama bin Laden and Afghanistan as an example.
Pakistan blacklisted by FATF
Asia-Pacific Group of the global financial watchdog Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on August 23 put Pakistan in the "enhanced blacklist" for its inaction against terror funding perpetrating on its soil. This development came a day after Pakistan submitted its compliance report on its 27-point action plan to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in hope to for a possible exit from the grey list. However, APG (Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering) placed Pakistan in the Enhanced Expedited Follow Up List (Black List) for failure to meet its standards, after FATF found Pakistan non-compliant on 32 of 40 compliance parameters on money laundering and terror financing.
"The APG has placed Pakistan in the Enhanced Expedited Follow Up List (Black List) for failure to meet its standards," an Indian official said in the development.
Updated 17:57 IST, October 18th 2019