Washington: The United States has responded to India’s objections after approving a special sustainment program for the maintenance of F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan, saying that this deal should not be considered as a message to New Delhi in the context of relations with Russia.
According to the news published in the Indian newspaper The Hindu, Eli Ratner, the Assistant Secretary for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs at the US Department of Defense, said in a conversation with representatives of certain media organizations and think tanks that this deal should not be linked to India-Russia relations.
He also said that India was provided with all information about the deal before and during the deal. According to the newspaper, Eli Ratner said that the decision of the US government to increase the defense partnership with Pakistan. “We have informed India about the deal before the announcement,” he said.
I also spoke about this during my visit to Delhi. Ratner said that he wanted to be transparent with India on this issue, so he was informed about the deal.
It should be noted that the American Defense Security Cooperation Agency had recently issued a statement saying that under this agreement, the F-16 aircraft already in possession of Pakistan will be repaired and related equipment will also be provided, however, this Weapons will not be included. According to the statement, this will help Pakistan in its ongoing campaign against terrorism.
However, America said that the military balance of the region will not be affected by this deal. According to media reports, India had strongly objected to the agreement with Pakistan regarding F-16 aircrafts. According to the English newspaper The Hindu, American official Donald Lowe was on a visit to India in the past few days, and during that time, the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed its objection several times.
