City
Epaper

US approves $125m support package for Pakistan's F-16s

By IANS | Updated: July 27, 2019 13:20 IST

The US has approved $125 million worth of support for Pakistan's F-16 warplanes, days after Prime Minister Imran Khan's ice-breaking visit to Washington where he met President Donald Trump.

Open in App

Approval to support US-built aircraft was approved by the US State Department on Friday and announced simultaneously by the US Defence Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA).

"The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to Pakistan for Technical Security Team (TST) in continued support of the F-16 programme for an estimated cost of $125 million," the DSCA said in a statement.

The Congress has been notified in this regard.

The government of Pakistan requested a continuation of technical support services, which includes US government and contractor technical and logistics support services. The request also included other related elements of logistics support to assist in the oversight of operations in support of the Pakistan Peace Drive advanced F-16 programme.

The total estimated programme cost is $125 million.

The potential sale will support US foreign policy and national security "by protecting US technology through the continued presence of US personnel that provide 24/7 end-use monitoring," the State Department said.

It added that the proposed sales of equipment and support "will not alter the basic military balance in the region".

The Trump administration had in January 2018 halted all Foreign Military Sale support programmes for Pakistan after accusing it of not helping Washington in achieving its objectives in Afghanistan.

But during Khan's July 20-23 visit to Washington, both sides announced they were now on the same page on Afghanistan, according to Pakistan media reports.

The Pakistani leader said that he would soon call Taliban leaders to Islamabad to persuade them to hold direct talks with the Taliban.

( With inputs from IANS )

Tags: pakistanUs State DepartmentState DepartmentTaliban
Open in App

Related Stories

NationalIndia Extends Airspace Ban on Pakistan-Based Aircraft Till July 24

InternationalUS Issues ‘Worldwide Caution’ for Americans After Iran Strike

InternationalUS President Donald Trump to Meet Pakistan Army Chief General Asim Munir in Washington DC Over Lunch

InternationalPakistan Gives Nuclear Bomb Threat to Israel If It Nukes Iran, Says Top Iranian Official Mohsen Rezaei

InternationalPakistani National Accused in Plot to Shoot New York Jewish Centre Extradited From Canada to US

International Realted Stories

InternationalIran executed 3 men accused of spying for Israel

International"Your chest should swell with pride": Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, onboard Axiom-4, says India back in space after 41 years

InternationalAxiom-4 Mission Lifts Off: India’s Shubhanshu Shukla, 3 Others Begin Journey to Space Station Aboard SpaceX Dragon (Watch Video)

InternationalKirti Vardhan Singh in Mozambique, highlights India's 'growth story' under PM Modi's leadership

InternationalAxiom Space lifts off: Journey of India's human space flight, says Shubanshu Shukla