In a
diplomatic coup for India that sets the stage for Prime Minister Narendra
Modi’s visit to the U.S. capital in June, the Obama administration on Monday
announced that the U.S. would not be financing the sale of F-16 fighter jets to
Pakistan. The administration’s turnaround, by now aligning itself with the
bipartisan sentiments expressed in the U.S. Congress against giving aid to finance
the deal, also signifies a change in its attitude towards Pakistan.
“…while
Congress has approved the sale, key members have made clear that they object to
using Foreign Military Financing (FMF) to support it. Given congressional
objections, we have told the Pakistanis that they should put forward national
funds for that purpose,” U.S. State Department spokesperson John Kirby said.
F-16 fighter jets stage a fly-past during a Pakistan Day military parade in Islamabad.
The
original plan was to sell eight F-16s to Pakistan and finance most of the $699
million deal through FMF. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman,
Republican Bob Corker and Democratic Ranking Member Ben Cardin, in early March,
announced that they would not approve FMF for Pakistan until it demonstrated
“behavioral changes” in its support of terrorism and its dealings with India.
India has
been strongly protesting the U.S. decision to give these fighter planes to
Pakistan, and the matter figured in Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar’s meetings
with U.S. officials last week in Washington. India has said these fighters could
be used to threaten India, a concern that many U.S. lawmakers also have raised
during a hearing on April 27. Mr. Modi will be addressing a joint session of
Congress on June 8.
The State
Department announcement came on the fifth anniversary of the U.S. raid in
Pakistan that killed al- Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden. On a special CNN programme on the Laden raid, President
Barack Obama said he took Pakistan at its word on its ignorance about the
terror leader’s presence in its territory, but Hillary Clinton, who was then
the Secretary of State, said she did not believe Pakistan. “I believe Pakistan
knew,” she said. “We could not prove it,” she said, adding that it was too much
of a coincidence that the Pakistani military did not notice the distinct
building that housed Osama.
While the
U.S. is increasingly “frustrated with Pakistan” — as a diplomatic source put it
— it cannot easily jettison it. Mr. Obama said in the interview that the U.S.
had “excellent counter terrorism cooperation with Pakistan,” and on April 27,
Special Envoy for Af-Pak Richard Olson argued that F-16s improved Pakistan’s
counter terror capabilities.
Even the
announcement of the U.S. decision to walk back on the F 16 deal came with a
preface. “…effective engagement with Pakistan, we believe, is critical to
promoting the consolidation of democratic institutions and economic stability,
and supporting the government’s counter-terrorism activities and capabilities.
As a matter of longstanding principle, the Department of State opposes
conditions to the release of appropriated foreign assistance funds,” Mr .Kirby
said.
Pakistan
has not been able to get the Taliban to the negotiating table in Afghanistan as
it had promised, and the U.S. is increasing its engagement with India on
Afghan, including on security related issues, much to the discomfort of
Pakistan. Mr. Olson and Peter Lavoy, Senior Director for South Asian Affairs at
the National Security Council visited New Delhi en-route to Kabul recently
where they met senior Indian officials including NSA Ajit Doval.
Contract for Lockheed Martin
Lockheed
Martin Corp, manufacturers of F-16s, has been lobbying hard for the Pakistan
deal, but the setback coincided with a $1.3 billion contract Pentagon announced
on Monday for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jet program. The new order is for
13 F-35s, the fifth generation stealth fighters. The Joint Strike Fighter
program is estimated to cost $379 billion for adding 2,457 aircraft, the
costliest Pentagon acquisition ever.Photo: Reuters
Source: The Hindu
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