Washington, August 22

Even as US President Donald Trump today hit out at Pakistan for providing safe havens to “agents of chaos” that kill Americans in Afghanistan and warned Islamabad that it had “much to lose” by harbouring terrorists, China jumped to its ally’s defence, saying Islamabad was at the frontline of combating terrorism.Trump, in his first prime-time televised address to the nation as commander-in-chief, came down heavily on Pakistan. “Pakistan often gives safe haven to agents of chaos, violence and terror. The threat is worse because Pakistan and India are two nuclear-armed states whose tense relations threaten to spiral into a conflict. And that could happen,” he said. He reached out to India, seeking an enhanced role in rebuilding Afghanistan.