On Wednesday, in a telephonic conversation aimed at consolidating the bilateral strategic partnership, Union defence minister Rajnath Singh conveyed to his US counterpart India's concern at the recent US decision to provide a sustenance package for Pakistan's F-16 fleet.
He was referring to last week's announcement about possible Foreign Military Sales (FMS) to Pakistan worth $450 million.
The announcement could not have been more ill-timed. It coincided with the visit to New Delhi of assistant secretary of state Donald Lu for a series of politico-military dialogues.
US excuses: The traditional US refrain is that such assistance "supports the foreign policy and national security objectives of the US, including interoperability in counterterrorism efforts", and, that it "will not alter the basic military balance in the region".
Pakistan has always been considered vital to US foreign policy and national security goals in South Asia, particularly in Afghanistan, despite US criticism that the former is "part of the problem in Afghanistan" and has "flirted over time with using terrorism as an instrument of state policy".
The F-16 saga with Pakistan is an old one. In December 1981, the US agreed to supply 40 F-16 aircraft.
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