US President Donald Trump is "not satisfied" with the efforts so far made by Pakistan in its crackdown on terrorism, White House Deputy Press Secretary Raj Shah has said.
"For the first time, we're holding Pakistan accountable for its actions. We've seen modest progress in terms of Pakistan's actual acknowledgement of these concerns, but President (Trump) is not satisfied with the progress when it comes to Pakistan," Shah said on Thursday while expressing the US administration's displeasure on the issue.
He was responding to a question on the progress made in Trump's South Asia policy which was announced in August last year.
Shah also shed light on the US's progress in Afghanistan, saying "we've made significant progress against the Islamic State, reducing their presence and eliminating hundreds of fighters".
"We've eliminated their top leaders, and we're working relentlessly to target their leadership and bases wherever they emerge," the Indian-American official added.
On August 22, 2017, Trump had laid down a policy for South-Asia and warned that the approach would now be more pragmatic than idealistic. He had warned that the US will take action within Pakistan if it did not stop backing terrorists battling American forces.
Trump had put long-time ally Pakistan on notice with a virtual ultimatum that it "has much to lose" by backing terrorists. He accused Islamabad of sheltering "the same organisations that try every single day to kill our people".
"We have been paying Pakistan billions and billions of dollars, at the same time they are housing the very terrorists we are fighting. But that will have to change and that will change immediately," he had said.
Trump had also asked India "to help us more with Afghanistan" and said a "critical part of the South Asia strategy for America was to further develop its strategic partnership with India -- the world's largest democracy and a key security and economic partner of the US".
--IANS
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