US cuts military training prog for Pakistan

President Donald Trump's administration has quietly started cutting scores of Pakistani officers from coveted training and educational programmes that have been a hallmark of bilateral military relations for more than a decade, US officials say.

The move, which has not been previously reported, is one of the first known impacts from Trump's decision this year to suspend US security assistance to Pakistan to compel it to crack down on Islamic militants.

The Pentagon and the Pakistani military did not comment directly on the decision or the internal deliberations, but officials from both countries privately criticised the move.

US officials, speaking to Reuters on the condition of anonymity, said they were worried the decision could undermine a key trust-building measure. Pakistani officials warned it could push their military to further look to China or Russia for leadership training.

The effective suspension of Pakistan from the U.S. government's International Military Education and Training program (IMET) will close off places that had been set aside for 66 Pakistani officers this year, a State Department spokesperson told Reuters.

The places will either be unfilled or given to officers from other countries.

It is unclear precisely what level of military cooperation still continues outside the IMET programme, beyond the top level contacts between US and Pakistani military leaders.

The US military has traditionally sought to shield such educational programmes from political tensions, arguing that the ties built by bringing foreign military officers to the United States pay long-term dividends.

For example, the US Army's War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, which would normally have two Pakistani military officers per year, boasts graduates including Lieutenant General Naveed Mukhtar, the current director-general of Pakistan's powerful spy agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence agency (ISI).

Pakistan has also been removed from programmes at the US Naval War College, Naval Staff College and courses including cyber security studies.

Russia and Pakistan signed an agreement earlier this week that would allow for Pakistani military officers to train at Russian institutes.

Pakistan's military has the country for about half of its history and traditionally seen the country's foreign policy in its domain.