Trump’s favour for Pakistan: Trump Gives Pakistan $686 Million to Upgrade Their F-16, Another Divisive Action Against India
Trump’s favor for Pakistan: As the package moves into a required 30-day review phase, the Trump administration’s notification of Congress of a planned $686 million sale to equip Pakistan’s F-16 fighter aircraft is certain to attract careful attention in India and scrutiny from MPs.
The Defense Security Cooperation Agency informed important committee heads that Pakistan will get a Letter of Offer and Acceptance from the US Air Force for “defense articles and services estimated to cost $686 million.”
What will the US provide Pakistan?
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman James Risch, and House Speaker Mike Johnson all received the alerts. Major defense equipment worth $37 million and extra hardware, software, and logistical support worth $649 million are included in the proposed package.
The MDE list includes six Mk-82 inert 500-pound bomb bodies, which are unguided, low-drag training weapons used only for integration and release testing, and 92 Link-16 tactical data link systems, a jam-resistant digital network used by the US and allied militaries to share real-time battlefield information.
The notification lists a variety of non-MDE items that complete the deal, such as avionics updates, modifications to the Operational Flight Program, secure communications systems, equipment for identifying friends or foes, cryptographic appliques, mission-planning systems, test equipment, spare parts, training devices, simulators, publications, and support for contractor engineering and logistics.
The US’s rationale for Pakistan’s assistance
The government said in its policy explanation that the upgrades would guarantee interoperability with US and partner forces and assist Pakistan in modernizing its fleet of Block-52 and Mid-Life Upgrade F-16 aircraft. “This proposed sale will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by allowing Pakistan to retain interoperability with US and partner forces in ongoing counterterrorism efforts,” the announcement said.
The US’s balanced approach to India
The renovation “will address critical flight safety concerns and extend the aircraft life through 2040,” it stated. ” The announcement also emphasized that the sale “will not alter the basic military balance in the region,” which was intended to allay long-standing Indian worries about US defense assistance to Pakistan.
The major contractor is Lockheed Martin, located in Fort Worth, Texas. The US administration said that it does not anticipate any effect on US defense preparedness and does not anticipate sending more people to Pakistan for implementation.
The planned transaction now has 30 days for Congress to consider. Similar notifications in prior years have proceeded without official resolutions of disapproval, despite the fact that weapons exports to Pakistan have often been the subject of bipartisan scrutiny.