“America Treated Pakistan Worse Than Toilet Paper,” Khawaja Asif Alleges Over Afghanistan War

Islamabad: Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has accused the United States of exploiting his country and treating it worse than toilet paper, during a candid speech in Pakistan’s Parliament. Asif said that Pakistan’s support for the U.S. during the Afghanistan war was a major mistake that has inflicted long-lasting damage on the nation.

Support Not for Islam, But for Global Power

Asif admitted that Pakistan’s involvement in Afghanistan was not motivated by religious reasons or the defense of Islam. “We did not enter these wars for jihad or to protect Islam. We did it for political legitimacy and to gain support from a superpower,” he said. He described the Afghanistan conflict as a proxy war between global powers, rather than a holy war.

Highlighting the long-term consequences, Asif said, “We even changed our education system to justify that war. Even today, the curriculum has not been corrected.” He criticized Pakistan’s repeated mistakes, noting that after the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, the country failed to learn from history and once again aligned with the U.S. following the September 11, 2001 attacks. “For two decades, we essentially leased ourselves to the Americans to gain their support,” he said.

Blame on the U.S. for Pakistan’s Turmoil

Asif said Pakistan’s alliance with America came at a steep price. “The U.S. treated Pakistan worse than toilet paper—used it and then discarded it,” he told Parliament. He blamed Washington for the country’s rising violence, extremism, and economic hardship, adding, “The damage we have suffered can never be fully compensated.”

Khawaja Asif’s remarks signal a growing critique within Pakistan of its past foreign policy, particularly the nation’s decades-long alignment with the U.S. in Afghanistan.