Bush admn defends sale of F-16s to Pak

Washington, July 21: The Bush administration defended its five billion dollar arms package sale, including 18 F-16s fighter jets, to Pakistan last month, saying it would strengthen the hand of President Pervez Musharraf and his government in ''supporting us in the war on terror''.

A bipartisan group of Congressmen, at a hearing of the House International Relations Committee on the sale of F-16s to Pakistan, severely criticised the Bush administration for ignoring Congress and a traditional 20-day "pre-notification" period.

Assistant Secretary of State for Political-military Affairs John Hillen, who testified on behalf of the administration, came under fire from the Committee members who feared that the sophisticated technology could be leaked to third countries like China, citing Pakistan's past proliferation record.

Mr Hillen was virtually reprimanded publicly by Republican Tom Lantos, who is the ranking Democrat on the Committee, when he failed to give a direct reply to withdraw the official notification on the sale and begin the process all over again.

Defending the sale, Mr Hillen said, This sale is a presidential priority and a key element of the administration's South Asia strategy unveiled in March 2005, aimed at broadening our strategic relationships with our key regional partners -- India, Afghanistan and Pakistan.'' ''This sale will send a very clear signal of our commitment to a long-term relationship with Pakistan... and strengthen the hand of President (Pervez) Musharraf and his government in supporting us in the war on terror and in continuing to make other politically difficult, yet strategic choices.''

The Congressmen, however, gave vent to their anger and frustration on to why Congress was bypassed and questioned the administration on why it did not set conditions on the sale like safety and compliance clauses to prevent and ''protect the US technology in these aircraft and missiles to a country that produced the AQ Khan nuclear network''.

A Q Khan, stated to be father of the bomb in Pakistan, had set up a network of blackmarketing sensitive weapons technology which he passed on to North Korea and Iran. Pakistan pardoned Khan, and said he acted on his own. Till today, despite several US requests, access to question Khan has been denied.

Some Democrats like Gary Ackerman, (NY) Eni Faleomavaega, (American Samoa) Brad Sherman, Diane Watson, Dana Rohrabacher (all from California) and Betty McCollum (Minnesota) contended that the sophisticated weaponry offered by the US would not be used by Pakistan in the fight against Taliban or al-Qaeda in Afghanistan but only against its neighbour India Chairman of the Committee Henry Hyde (Illinois Republican) said he was troubled by the idea that the deal would help China and by extension Chinese arms customers such as Iran and Iran's clients in the West Asia, including Hizbollah.

However, Mr Hillen countered this saying, ''We don't think China will be advantaged by this sale at all. In fact, the best thing that could happen for the Chinese military is for a sale like this not to go through because then it is they who will influence the Pakistan military as opposed to the United States.'' ''We want to build this relationship precisely to help them (Pakistan) get better at combating terrorism,'' Mr Hillen added.

Mr Hillen faced criticism for ignoring a traditional 20-day pre-notification period for conferring with Congress on arms sales in addition to the 30 days in which the sale can be blocked. Republican Tom Lantos said he supported the sale to Pakistan but had safety concerns. ''I am extremely concerned about the details of the security arrangements to be put in place to safeguard these aircraft, their associated technologies and munitions, all of which would be of great interest to third parties, especially China, a close ally of Pakistan.''

It is also an unfortunate fact that Pakistani export controls are so lax as to have allowed A Q Khan to provide the crown jewels of Pakistan's nuclear weapons development programme to states such as North Korea and Iran. The administration's plan is completely inadequate to safeguard US technology properly and to protect US national security against espionage and compromise in Pakistan,'' Mr Lantos said.

Criticising the State Department for ignoring the established policy in arms sales, he said, ''this arrogant usurpation of Congressional powers sours the whole procedure''.

''This was a calculated attempt to change the working relationship between Congress and the administration to the detriment of this committee's proper oversight prerogatives over US arms sales. I also believe that it was a calculated attempt to prevent this committee from insisting on additional changes to the security plan for these aircraft and technology to protect US national security.'' He along with Henry Hyde (R-IL) introduced a bill requiring quarterly updates on possible future arms sales and formal enforcement of the 20-day pre-notification period.

The proposed sale of F-16s coincides with a landmark civilian nuclear cooperation deal with India. Pakistan's requests for a similar deal has been turned down by the Bush administration.

Some see the fighter jet sale as an effort to appease a miffed Pakistan.

The White House notified the Congress of the five billion dollar aircraft sale on June 28.

In his prepared remarks to the Committee, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Richard A. Boucher, who pitched for the sale of the F-16s, said, ''We cannot ignore Pakistan's basic national security concerns. We are asking Pakistan to do difficult things to protect Americans, and we must show concern in return for its security. The F-16 sale provides a clear and concrete signal to all Pakistanis that the country's security is important to the United States. A confident Pakistan that feels secure is more likely to pursue peace and cooperation with its neighbours.''

Conversely, he said, ''a Pakistan that feels vulnerable is more likely to rely on nuclear weapons and non-conventional tactics to ensure its security. I am sure we all agree that this is not the direction in which we want Pakistan to go. I believe it is in our national interest to proceed with this sale. I hope you will approve this transfer.''

UNI