Activists of the Difa-e-Pakistan Council shout anti-U.S. slogans at a protest in Karachi, January 2, 2018. Pakistan summoned the U.S. ambassador, an embassy spokesman said January 2, in a rare public rebuke after Donald Trump lashed out at Islamabad with threats to cut aid over “lies” about militancy.
Getty
President Trump’s New Year’s Day lambasting of Pakistan on Twitter has drawn an angry response on the streets and an official summoning of the U.S. ambassador in Islamabad to demand an explanation.
The president began the second year of his presidency with confrontational tweets targeting Pakistan and Iran. He slammed Islamabad on Monday for “lies & deceit,” saying the country had played U.S. leaders for “fools,” by not doing enough to control Islamic militants.
“The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years, and they have given us nothing but lies & deceit, thinking of our leaders as fools. They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help. No more!”
It was not immediately clear why the president decided to comment on Pakistan, or whether it could signal a shift in U.S. policy regarding the Asian nation. As recently as October, President Trump voiced optimism over relations with Pakistan, saying the U.S. was being “respected again” following Pakistan’s compliance with a rescue operation that saw an American woman and her family released after years of captivity with a group linked to the Taliban.
Later on Monday, U.S. Ambassador David Hale was summoned to the Pakistani Foreign Office to explain Mr. Trump’s tweet, according to Pakistani media reports.
A spokesperson for the embassy confirmed to the Reuters news agency that the meeting had taken place, but provided no details of the discussion.
On the streets of Karachi, meanwhile, scores of protesters hit the streets to voice their anger at Mr. Trump’s rhetoric. The demonstration, organized by an umbrella group of religious-political parties, saw angry protesters burn an image of the U.S. leader and U.S. flags, as they chanted anti-American slogans.
Activists of the Difa-e-Pakistan Council shout anti-US slogans at a protest in Karachi on January 2, 2018.
Getty
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was to chair a cabinet meeting later Tuesday focused on Mr. Trump’s accusations, and on Wednesday the country’s officials from across the military and civilian government were to meet to discuss fast-deteriorating U.S. ties, Reuters said.
The U.S. has long accused Islamabad of allowing militants to operate relatively freely in Pakistan’s border regions to carry out operations in neighboring Afghanistan. In August, the United States said it would hold up $255 million in military assistance for Pakistan until it cracks down on extremists threatening Afghanistan.
Pakistani officials, including Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif, responded on Twitter that the country would make clear “the difference between facts and fiction.”
© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.