WASHINGTON: Even after voting approval for the sale of F-16 fighter aircraft to Pakistan, the US Senate's attitude towards Islamabad surely seems to be changing. While Senator Rand Paul's resolution against the sale was defeated 71-24, sources said the issue was more about Paul's attempt to challenge the Congress leadership.
Republican Senator Paul said, “We've got a lot of things going on in our country that need to be taken care of, and we don't have enough money to be sending it to Pakistan.” Arguing at the senate floor, he said, “I can't in good conscience look away as America crumbles at home and politicians tax us to send the money to corrupt and duplicitous regimes abroad.” Meanwhile, India lobbied against the sale, and continues to maintain the pressure. As Paul's resolution favours India, sources following Congressional debates said India did not favour the resolution that created a procedural issue in the Congress. Many feel efforts from the Indian side wasn't good enough which is why it ended in a failure. People also suggested that India should not get into such public lobbying efforts unless it was playing to win.
Back home, there is some anger within the government that the US chose to announce the deal when New Delhi was recovering from the Pathankot terror attack.
But the Senate's foreign relations committee leadership maintained that it was better to dangle the planes before Pakistan so that Washington could have leverage over Islamabad, lest it gravitate towards China and Russia for such purchases. The debate essentially answered the question: why eight jets, and why now. “They are just throwing out some bones to Pakistan to keep them in line for the next few months,” one legislative observer explained.
Republican senator Bob Corker, who has said he supports the sale but will not allow US taxpayer to subsidize it, explained it more tactfully. “It's about whether we as a country would prefer for Pakistan to buy American made fighter jets or whether we would prefer them to buy Russian jets or French jets,” he observed.
