Author: Manu Pubby
Publication: The Indian Express
Date: June 1, 2011
URL: http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/US-denied-missile-to-Pak-for-India-was-target-WikiLeaks/797947/
Introduction: US envoy's cable said missiles
would serve no counter-insurgency purpose
While the US cleared billions of dollars'
worth arms sales to Pakistan for the fight against terror, including advanced
F 16 fighters, it refused the sale of a crucial advanced missile technology
due to concerns that it could be used to target India. A request by Islamabad
to procure an advanced Harpoon missile system was turned down in 2009 after
Washington determined that it would threaten India, latest diplomatic cables
released by WikiLeaks reveal.
In a cable dated March 18, 2009, US Ambassador
Anne W Patterson justified the sale of F 16 fighters to Pakistan, holding
that it was not a threat as India has an overwhelming aerial superiority,
and went on to say that Washington has occassionally denied "Pakistani
requests for arms sales that could upset the regional balance of power".
As an example, the cable quotes a decision
taken in February 2009 turning down the request for the advanced Harpoon missile
system. The reason given is that the new system would enable Pakistan to target
the Indian coastline and would not have any use in the war against terror.
"We have and will deny arms sales that
we believe would upset the regional balance of power, as we have with the
recent GOP (Government of Pakistan) request to buy the Coastal Targeting Suppression
System, which enables Harpoon missiles to be fired at land or near-land targets
using GPS technology," reads the cable titled "Saving the F 16 Program".
The cable goes on to say that the "acquisition
would have given Pakistan an overt offensive capability to threaten India
and served no COIN (Counter Insurgency) purpose".
India has on several occasions raised the
issue of increasing arms sales to Pakistan with the US, with Defence Minister
A K Antony bringing it to the attention of visiting high-level American officials.
India has conveyed its concerns on the arms sales, holding that a range of
equipment being sold or gifted is more useful in conventional warfare rather
than the war against terror.
Other cables that have also been released
recently bring out the dire state of Pakistan's financial health and express
concerns that Islamabad has been spending billions on arms despite facing
bankruptcy. A cable dated January 2009 reveals that not only did Pakistan
default in paying for the F 16 fighters that it ordered in 2006 but was also
behind on payments to a crucial ally like China.
The payments, the cable says, were related
to the JF 17 fighter project with China that has been touted as Pakistan's
flagship joint fighter development program. Pakistan also defaulted on payments
for advanced airborne early warning systems from Sweden.
"The GOP is also reportedly behind in payments to China, Sweden and other
countries for JF-17s, Erieye Airborne Early Warning And Control (AEW&C)
radar and other aircraft/ programs," reads the cable.
