Trump meets with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan for the first time

President Donald Trump sat down Monday for his first White House meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and offered to help mediate the long-running  Kashmir conflict between Pakistan and India.

And the president is eager to persuade Pakistan to pressure the Afghan Taliban to agree to a cease-fire and hold direct talks with the Afghan government.

He touted U.S. military capabilities in Afghanistan amid ongoing security tensions – and vowed he would win the Afghan war ‘in a week’ were it not for mass casualty scenarios.

‘I could win that war in a week. I just don’t want to kill 10 million people. Does that make sense to you,’ Trump told reporters in the White House as he met with Khan, 66.

‘I have plans on Afghanistan, that if I wanted to win that war, Afghanistan would be wiped off the face of the earth,’ Trump said, without revealing details. ‘It would be over in literally 10 days. And I don’t want to go that route,’ he said. Afghanistan has a population of about 35 million. 

 

US President Donald Trump wants Pakistan to help with the Afghan peace process. He said he has a plan to win the war in a week but it would result in the deaths of 10 million people

Trump  vented about the war, which began under the George W. Bush administration: ‘We’ve been there for 19 years in Afghanistan. It’s ridiculous.’

He offered some praise for Pakistan, despite past criticism of the government amid frustration over not doing more to prevent terror attacks. 

Pakistan ‘helps us with that,’ Trump said. Because ‘we don’t want to stay as policemen’ in Afghanistan.

‘Pakistan’s going to help us out to extricate ourselves. We’re like policemen,’ Trump said. 

‘What our leadership got us into is ridiculous,’ he said.

Trump said Pakistan was ‘subversive’ in the past, and mentioned military aid.

‘We paid $1.3 billion to Pakistan in aid for many years. The problem was Pakistan, this is before you, Pakistan was not doing anything for us. They were really I think subversive, they were going against us,’ he said, directing remarks to Khan.

‘I ended that a year and a half ago,’ he said. ‘To be honest, I think we have a better relationship with Pakistan right now than when we were paying that money. But all of that can come back, depending on what we work out.’

He mentioned a gradual troop draw-down. ‘We’re doing it very slowly, very safely. And we’re doing it with Pakistan,’ Trump said. Then he returned to an implied threat.

‘We could go one of two ways. We could do a number the likes of which they’ve never seen before, and win it very quickly,’ he said.

‘I don’t want to do that. Because you’re talking about millions of people and I don’t want to do that,’ he said. 

President Donald Trump shakes hands with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, July 22, 2019, in Washington

President Donald Trump shakes hands with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, July 22, 2019, in Washington

US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, DC, on July 22, 2019

US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, DC, on July 22, 2019

Trump also offered to mediate the tense situation in Kashmir

Trump also offered to mediate the tense situation in Kashmir

Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan shakes hands with U.S. President Donald Trump at the start of their meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S., July 22, 2019

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan shakes hands with U.S. President Donald Trump at the start of their meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S., July 22, 2019

Trump paid both the Pakistani people generally and Khan with a compliment, saying they were ‘tough.’  

‘They’re great people. I have many friends from Pakistan. Living in New York, I have a lot of Pakistani friends, I will tell you that,’ he continued. ‘And they’re great people. Smart, tough. They are tough, there’s no question about that. They’re like him, they’re tough.’ 

Khan also offered laudatory remarks.  

‘This is the longest war that the United States has ever fought,’ Khan said. ‘Anyone who knows the history of Afghanistan … there was always going to be a political settlement at the end,’ he said.

Trump met  Monday with Khan for talks centering on Afghanistan as the US seeks a peace accord with the Taliban to end more than 18 years of war.

But he also caught regional rival India off guard with his comments about the hotly disputed Kashmir region.

‘There are over 1 billion and a quarter people in the subcontinent. They are held hostage to the issue of Kahsmir. And I feel that only the most powerful state headed by President Trump can bring the two countries together,’ said Khan, raising the issue in the part of their Oval Office meeting that had reporters present. 

‘I was with Prime Minister Modi two weeks ago,’ Trump said, mentioning the Indian prime minister. 

‘He actually said would you like to be a mediator or arbitrator. I said where? He said Kashmir. Because this has been going on for many, many years. I was surprised at how long,’ Trump said.

’70 years,’ interjected Khan.

‘I think they’d like to see it resolved and I think you’d like to see it resolved. And if I can help, I would love to be a mediator. It shouldn’t be – I mean it’s impossible to believe, two incredible countries that are very, very smart with very smart leadership can’t solve a problem like that. But if you would want me to mediate arbitrate, I would be willing to do that,’ the president said.

India’s foreign ministry did not agree with his characterization. 

‘We have seen @POTUS’s remarks to the press that he is ready to mediate, if requested by India & Pakistan, on Kashmir issue. No such request has been made by PM @narendramodi to US President,’ wrote Raveesh Kumar, India’s Ministry of External Affairs spokesman.

‘It has been India’s consistent position that all outstanding issues with Pakistan are discussed only bilaterally. Any engagement with Pakistan would require an end to cross border terrorism. The Shimla Agreement & the Lahore Declaration provide the basis to resolve all issues between India & Pakistan bilaterally,’ he added. 

Trump said he could win the war in Afghanistan 'in a week'

Trump said he could win the war in Afghanistan ‘in a week’

Smokes rises after an explosion in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 1, 2019. A powerful bomb blast rocked the Afghan capital early Monday, rattling windows, sending smoke billowing from Kabul's downtown area and wounding dozens of people

Smokes rises after an explosion in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 1, 2019. A powerful bomb blast rocked the Afghan capital early Monday, rattling windows, sending smoke billowing from Kabul’s downtown area and wounding dozens of people

Afghan security officials secure the scene of a suicide bombing in Kabul, Afghanistan, July 01, 2019. At least 10 people were killed and 65 more injured in a suicide bombing, followed by gunfight at a Defense Ministrys installation in the Afghan capital Kabul on Monday, officials and local media confirmed

Afghan security officials secure the scene of a suicide bombing in Kabul, Afghanistan, July 01, 2019. At least 10 people were killed and 65 more injured in a suicide bombing, followed by gunfight at a Defense Ministrys installation in the Afghan capital Kabul on Monday, officials and local media confirmed

Afghans security personnel investigate at the site of a bomb explosion in front of Kanul University in Kabul on July 19, 2019. - At least four people have been killed and several wounded after a bomb detonated near a university in Kabul on July 19, officials said, the latest violence to hit the war-torn Afghan capital

Afghans security personnel investigate at the site of a bomb explosion in front of Kanul University in Kabul on July 19, 2019. – At least four people have been killed and several wounded after a bomb detonated near a university in Kabul on July 19, officials said, the latest violence to hit the war-torn Afghan capital

In his first visit to the White House since taking power, the former cricket star was expected to hear demands from Trump, who in the past has accused Pakistan of lying and being duplicitous.

The goal of the visit, said a senior Trump administration official, is ‘to press for concrete cooperation from Pakistan to advance the Afghanistan peace process.’

The Trump administration also wants to encourage Pakistan to ‘deepen and sustain its recent effort to crack down on militants and terrorists within its territory,’ the official said on condition of anonymity.

The United States is pressing for a political agreement with the Taliban before presidential voting in Afghanistan in late September. This would clear the way for most US troops to withdraw from Afghanistan and bring an end to America’s longest war.

Washington and Kabul accuse Pakistan of supporting armed extremist groups such as the Haqqani network, which is an ally of the Taliban, by giving it refuge in Pakistani regions along the border with Afghanistan.

Pakistan denies providing such support and argues that, in fact, it has sustained huge losses in terms of lives and money as it fights extremism.

‘We are concerned about the links between these groups and Pakistan’s intelligence services and military,’ the administration official said, referring to Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the Haqqani network.

Days before Khan’s visit, Pakistani authorities detained Hafiz Saeed, the founder of LeT and the alleged mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, in a move hailed by Trump as a result of the pressure applied by his administration.

But Saeed — declared a global terrorist by the United States and the United Nations — has for years rotated in and out of detention, and Democratic lawmakers later hit back at the president, tweeting: ‘Let’s hold the (applause) until he’s convicted.’

– What Pakistan wants –

Islamabad want to shore up relations with Washington after years of discord following the discovery of 9/11 architect Osama Bin Laden on Pakistani soil, where he was killed in a US raid in 2011.

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan once described a potential meeting with the US president as a "bitter pill" to swallow

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan once described a potential meeting with the US president as a ‘bitter pill’ to swallow

‘One of the big storylines going into the Trump-Khan meeting is the sharp disconnect in expectations,’ said Michael Kugelman, deputy director of the Asia Program at The Wilson Center.

‘Pakistan wants to use the meeting as an opportunity to reset and broaden the relationship. The US has a more narrowly defined goal of securing more assistance from Pakistan for the Afghanistan peace process,’ said Kugelman.

The IMF has just approved a $6 billion loan to help right Pakistan’s faltering economy, and keeping the US onside is crucial in maintaining the flow of Western assistance, added Raza Rumi, a Pakistan expert at Ithaca College.

In particular, Pakistan would like US support at the next meeting of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) — an anti-money-laundering monitor based in Paris that has threatened to blacklist the country for failing to do enough to combat terror financing, said Rumi.

– Generals in tow –

The interaction between the two leaders — both celebrities-turned-politicians whose love lives once made regular tabloid fare — will also be watched closely.

Before taking power, Khan once described the idea of meeting with Trump as a ‘bitter pill’ to swallow.

But the fact that Khan has brought with him his army chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, will be welcomed by Washington since Pakistan’s military is widely believed to be the ultimate decision maker in matters of foreign policy, said Shuja Nawaz, a South Asia expert at the Atlantic Council.

‘I think it gives a little more credibility to whatever message the Pakistanis are bringing,’ he said.

‘In the past, we’ve always had instances where civilian prime ministers come and make some public statements and then privately they complain about the military to their American hosts, with the hope of getting them on their side.’

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