Washington knew of Pak plan but failed to stop it

WASHINGTON, April 11: The United States was aware of the impending test by Pakistan of its Ghauri missile and tried to buy it off by promisi...

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WASHINGTON, April 11: The United States was aware of the impending test by Pakistan of its Ghauri missile and tried to buy it off by promising to speed up delivery of the sequestered F-16s, well-placed defence analysts said here on Friday.

But demonstrating an unusually independent streak, Islamabad went ahead and tested the missile, risking not just the delivery of the planes, but also possible sanctions by the White House and legislative wrath from proliferation hawks in the Congress.

“We said there was an understanding that the Pakistanis would maintain status quo on the missile tests in return for our help on the F-16 question, either getting the planes delivered or getting the money back. But they went ahead and tested it anyway,” Gary Milholin, an influential proliferation expert and Director of the Wisconsion Project on Nuclear Arms Control said.

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While Washington tried to buy the Ghauri test with the F-16 carrot, it is not known if it used any stick or even warned Islamabad of the consequencesof testing. Washington also knew that North Korea was the principle source of technology for the Ghauri missile, despite efforts by Pakistan to conceal the transactions, Milholin said. US officials claim North Korea has previously supplied such technology to Iran, Syria and Egypt.

Analysts say Pakistani chutzpah appears to have been sparked by the need to show its people some spunk in the face of the new Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Government in India. The lack of movement on the F-16 front and the frustration arising from it also forced Islamabad into an in-your-face attitude against Washington.

The Pakistani resolve, unlike New Delhi’s weak-kneed response to Western pressure, has been enthusiastically welcomed by its people, with influential leaders lauding the Government’s move to stand up to superpower pressure and look at its own security considerations.

The 28 F-16s ordered and paid for by Pakistan have been lying wrapped in vinyl in a desert air base, sequestered because of a Congressional actsuspending military aid to Pakistan. White House efforts to find third-party buyers has failed so far and the Congress is not about to refund money. A frustrated Islamabad has said it will sue the US Government to get the planes or the money back, but Washington has been pretty blase about the threats.

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While the Clinton administration has been low-key in its reaction to the Ghauri test, with only a whisper of a threat of sanctions, there was a flurry of protest on the Hill with several law-makers dashing of letters and statements condemning what they termed as a provocation by Pakistan and urging the executive into a tougher position.

“I am disappointed to see the administration put equal blame on India and Pakistan even though it was clearly Pakistan that was escalating tension with this latest act of missile proliferation. I will continue urging our Government to be less indulgent of Pakistan,” New Jersey Congressman Frank Pallone said.

While the Clinton administration has been low-key in itsreaction to the Ghauri test, with only a whisper of a threat of sanctions, there was a flurry of protest on the Hill with several law-makers dashing of letters and statements condemning what they termed as a provocation by Pakistan and urging the executive into a tougher position.

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Considering the new missile has a range of 900 miles and would be able to strike most of India, the Indian Government has every right to be alarmed, Pallone said. “India has every right to protect itself, considering that it has both Pakistan and China as neighbours,” he added.

Pallone’s colleague Ohio Congressman Sherrod Brown also deplored the test calling it “extremely disturbing and unacceptable”.