Recent tensions between India and Pakistan have also raised serious questions about US arms export policy.
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Tensions between India and Pakistan had risen in recent times. Against this backdrop, the US arms export policy has also been called into question. Fighter jets from both India and Pakistan came face to face in space along the LoC. Pakistan shot down Indian Air Force MiG-21 Bison aircraft and captured its pilot wing commander Abhinandan Vardhman. India also shot down the Pakistan Air Force's F-16 fighter jet. They fell in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Pakistan initially claimed that none of its aircraft had been shot down by India. While making this claim, the Pakistani rulers also slammed the fact that F-16s were not deployed on the border to fight against India. However, India refuted both these claims of Pakistan. The remnants of a medium-range surface-to-air missile found at the Indian border were presented by Air Vice Marshal RGK Kapoor, Deputy Chief of Air Staff, at a press conference. So Pakistan was hit in the face. RGK Kapoor emphasized in a press conference that only the F-16s have the capability to launch the relevant missiles.
Taking note of India's evidence, the US embassy in Pakistan said, "We are examining the facts of India's claim that Pakistan used F-16s to shoot down Indian Air Force aircraft. If Pakistan did indeed use F-16s, it would be a breach of its military sale agreement with the United States. The agreement provides clear instructions on where and how Pakistan should use the aircraft.
Pakistan's breach of contract
In 2008, the US House of Representatives debated whether to sell F-16s to Pakistan. The House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia also held a hearing on the topic, "Defeating Al Qaeda's Air Force: Pakistan's F-16 Program in the War on Terror." Chairman of the subcommittee Gary L. Ackerman expressed concern over the safety of F-16s to be supplied to Pakistan.
Asked how he could trust Pakistan, Ackerman said, "It is difficult to believe that Pakistan will only use F-16s against India and not just against terrorists."
However, F-16s were eventually sold to Pakistan for the broader purpose of "achieving the same objectives of attacking terrorist bases along Pakistan's western border, as well as the accuracy of the Pakistan Air Force to destroy terrorist bases at night in such attacks."
Now, even if we say that Pakistan has violated the sale agreement by using F-16s against India, the details of the 'final user rights agreement' between the US and Pakistan have not been made public as per the terms of the US government foreign military sale agreement. The US embassy in Pakistan has made it clear that "the US administration does not and will not comment publicly on the matter under investigation."
However, if the 'end user rights agreement' really prevents Pakistan from using F-16s for any purpose other than in the war on terror, then the issue of F-16s deployed by Pakistan against India could be a ploy made by Pakistan for the US. Pakistan could blackmail the US on the issue by raising the issue of war on terror.
Pakistan is trying to stabilize those limits through this title. This will make it difficult for the US to enter India's 15 billion fighter jet market.
Indian potential
The defense trade between India and the United States, which was less than १ 1 billion in 2008, has now grown to १८ 18 billion. Defense exports between the US and India have increased by 550 per cent during 2013-17. Especially in the case of fighter jets, India - the world's largest arms importer, for the United States - will be the world's largest arms manufacturer and exporter, the fastest growing market. For example, Lockheed Martin, a US defense agency, competes with Boeing's F / A-18, Saab's Grypen, Dassault Aviation's Raphael and Eurofighter Typhoon to sell 114 fighter jets to the Indian Air Force, valued at about १५ 15 billion.
Also, on the principles of co-production and co-development, the Defense Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) has moved India and the US away from the traditional buyer-seller dynamics. Although DTTI's holistic approach is to find a way out of the difficulties created by Modi's Make in India and Trump's America First policies, it seems immature. Lockheed Martin had proposed to move its F-16 production unit to India through the Tata Advanced system. So that India, which manufactures F-16s, would be the only market in the world and could trade abroad.
Last year, Lockheed Martin announced that his joint venture would manufacture F-16 wings in India, whether or not he received a start-up order from the Indian Army. The Pakistan Air Force has had knowledge of handling F-16s since 1980. One can argue that Lockheed Martin may have made the above announcement only because he was convinced that the Indian Air Force would not be interested in the purchase of the fighter jet whose name has been linked to the Pakistan Air Force.
F-21 - Old liquor in a new bottle ?
Lockheed Martin presented the F-21 fighter jet at the recent Aero Show in Bangalore. Although the F-21 is supposed to be specially designed for the Indian Air Force, experts say there is no difference between the F-16 Block 70 and the F-21.
As described by Vivek Lul (Lockheed Martin's Vice President for Strategy and Business Development), the F-21 differs internally from the F-16. Although the design is different from the F-16, the engine is the same. However, Lul said that special changes have been made in the F-21 for India. This change is the surface of the F-21 - a fighter jet cage, which could be used to house additional weapons in the future, increasing the avionic capability of the fighter jet. The F-16 was rejected by the Indian Air Force in the Medium Multi-Roll Combat Aircraft competition as the F-16's airframe was not suitable for future integrated expansion capabilities.
Focusing on India's need for 114 aircraft, the F-21 is rumored to be an Indian-built fighter jet for India. However, Lockheed Martin's claim has led to an increase in risk as well as a price issue. This is because the claim that the F-21 manufactured in India can be sold abroad cannot be confirmed until the tender is approved as the co-production agreement with Tata Advance Systems cannot be finalized. In addition, if Pakistan has a strategy of using F-16s to entrap the US, then Lockheed Martin's plan to capture the Indian fighter jet market through F-21s is unlikely to come to fruition.
Due to the massive corruption in arms procurement in the past and the ongoing political battle over the purchase of Raphael aircraft, arms procurement in India has become a topic of public discussion. In the midst of the recent tensions, India's downing of the Pakistan Air Force's F-16 by MiG-21 Bison, a less advanced technology than the F-16, has become a sign of India's disapproval. Also, due to the similarities between the F-21 and the F-16, it is assumed that the F-21 will be at the very bottom of India's ranking.
Most importantly, when Pakistan's ambassador to the US was recently asked about the misuse of F-16s, he responded by saying that Pakistan had not violated the agreement in the first place. He also pointed out that Pakistan, on the other hand, refrained from taking any action in defense of the 'End User Rights Agreement'. The Pakistani ambassador's response raises the question of whether Pakistan supports any use of F-16s. Israel, for example, is free to deploy U.S. weapons anywhere for self-defense under the "End User Rights Agreement" with the United States.
The long-standing rapprochement of the United States with Pakistan has been affecting or undermining the growing Indo-US friendship. Measures such as curtailing economic aid to Pakistan and curbing Pakistan's economic pulse have positively enhanced the friendly relations between the US and India. However, again, if the US gives Pakistan a lenient measure on the use of F-16s, it could lead to a rift in the relationship.
Therefore, the future of the F-21 in India will depend on how the US reacts to Pakistan's deployment of F-16s towards India. If the US gives Pakistan a lenient measure, the future of the F-21 will be in question. Meanwhile, the $ 15 billion trade deal remains unfulfilled.
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