Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said Tuesday that the war in Afghanistan between Taliban forces and the U.S.-backed government, which has gone on for almost two decades, would have continued for another 19 years should it not have been for President Donald Trump.
After a visit to the White House, Khan delivered an address at the U.S. Institute of Peace, saying “thank God for President Trump” and adding that if it hadn’t been for his administration’s policies, the U.S. could have facilitated another 19 years of war in Afghanistan.
“Nineteen years of conflict. Thank God for President Trump, I mean, this could have gone on for another 19 years,” he remarked. “We believe that we should not ever interfere in the internal affairs of Afghanistan,” Khan continued, saying that his country would “facilitate the peace process.”
“Fortunately now, the United States is on the same page too,” he added.
Khan’s comments come after a Monday meeting with Trump at the White House, during which the President said that the conflict in Afghanistan could be ended quickly, but would cost millions of lives, The Hill informs.
“We’re like policemen. We’re not fighting a war. If we wanted to fight a war in Afghanistan and win it, I could win it in a week. I just don’t want to kill 10 million people. Does that make sense to you? I don’t want to kill 10 million people,” Trump said.
He also suggested that previous Pakistani administrations demonstrated no respect for the United States, but Trump pointed out that he didn’t “blame” them.
“I don’t think Pakistan respected the United States, I don’t think Pakistan respected its presidents,” President Trump said on Monday. “And I don’t blame them because they were dealing with the wrong presidents.”
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