Orders To Kill U.S. Troops Complicates Sale Of F-16’s To Pakistan
If Pakistan is not picking up the peaces and NOT clearing out the Taliban IN Pakistan, why in the hell should we give or sell them ANYTHING that will just hinder the war effort further and endanger US troops? Hard sell? You bet.
No money or weapons should be given to “An Allie” to be used against OUR forces in the long run, blatantly or “mistakenly”. Im tired of these supposed allies that continuly have one hand stretched out for Amrican money, and hold a knife in the other, behind their back ready to kill us after we give it to them. Or tell us if you don’t give it to us, we will cut off your supply routes.
Where I come from its called aggravated robbery.
September 16, 2008
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Bush administration expects an uphill battle with Congress for permission to use counterterrorism funds to upgrade Pakistan’s F-16 fighters, the State Department’s top diplomat for South Asia said on Monday.
But even if lawmakers balk, the State Department believes it has the authority to shift counterterrorism aid to the fighter program.
“For the moment, we’re not taking a legalistic approach to this. We’re trying to work it out with the Congress,” Richard Boucher, assistant secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs, said in an interview with Reuters.
Lawmakers plan to hold a hearing on Tuesday to grill administration officials on the F-16 program with Pakistan and its use in counterterrorism operations against al Qaeda and Taliban extremists in the border areas with Afghanistan.
Analysts say the F-16, built by Lockheed Martin Corp, and other big-ticket military items have in the past been viewed by Islamabad as weapons to help Pakistan counter its rival, India.
In July, two senior Democratic lawmakers asked the administration not to use the $226.5 million to refurbish the the F-16s. They said they feared the plan diverted cash from more urgent counterterrorism equipment like helicopters and night-vision goggles.
But Boucher said the F-16s also had been used for counterterrorism missions in hundreds of sorties targeting militants in the tribal areas in recent months.
The F-16 upgrade was badly needed, he said, and would give Pakistan with a more effective counter-terrorism tool, enabling forces to work at night and improve precision-strike capability.
He also said the money would come from areas, such as maritime patrol programs, that were not as urgently needed as the fighter upgrades.
“I think it’s an uphill climb but we don’t shy away from uphill climbs,” Boucher said of the State Department’s effort to convince Congress to allow it to shift the funds to the Pakistani F-16 program.
PAYMENT FOR LOCKHEED
Over the summer, the Bush administration made a payment “in the $100 million range” to Lockheed after it became clear the firm would otherwise fire workers involved in the project, he said.
The next payment is due in October and the administration is working with Congress to try to resolve the issue by the end of this month, Boucher said. “We don’t want to go ahead without some kind of understanding on the part of Congress.”
A Congressional aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said appropriating subcommittees in Congress were entitled to request a “hold” on reprogramming funds and this had been done on the F-16 upgrades. However, he said this was not legally binding.
It was “atypical” for a government agency to go ahead with redirecting money over the objections of the chair of the relevant committees in Congress, the aide said.
U.S. officials have long been frustrated at what they view as Pakistan’s failure to do enough to combat militants along its border with Afghanistan. The United States has some 33,000 troops in Afghanistan, many of whom are fighting the Taliban insurgency.
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what a bunch of BS
September 17th, 2008 at 9:38 amHell no. Until the Pakistani’s either get control of the tribal areas, or create a buffer zone for NATO to operate in, they do not get F-16’s to play chicken with India.
Dumb Dumb Dumb
September 17th, 2008 at 9:54 amDon’t give the Paks anymore money. Look at their record. We have already given them a pile of money and they haven’t done shit. They have not been fighting the insurgents. They seem to be letting them reinforce and recruit, like Lebanon has done with Hizbollah.
Now they threaten us for doing what they should have been doing all along. Enough is enough.
If they are having upgrade problems, then maybe we can feel secure in the knowledge they cannot turn our own weapons on us. I hate muslims. They are a bunch of lying, thieving,
September 17th, 2008 at 10:02 amignorant, crooked bastards.
what can you expeact from a country whose people were also the very ones that set bombs in the London underground ?
they are jihadists, and they are helping the Talibani to fuck all of us
September 17th, 2008 at 10:02 amPak has used F-16s against AQ and Tailiboners? Hmm. Must have been solely for previously mentioned ‘American entertainment’?
September 17th, 2008 at 10:04 amIt’s the muslim way.
September 17th, 2008 at 10:14 amOn this issue I am on the side of the Democrats. What the hell is Bush doing?
September 17th, 2008 at 3:22 pmWHAT THE FUCK!
September 17th, 2008 at 3:24 pm