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ISLAMABAD: The United States has made it clear that if any request from Pakistan for defence equipment is received and approved by Washington, then it will not be sent from the existing stocks inside Afghanistan, “but likely to be sourced from US stock outside Afghanistan”.
It has not been made clear from which spot on the globe outside Afghanistan.Normally, in such cases, the equipment comes free of cost but transportation charges are borne by the country which successfully qualifies to get the war equipment.
For cash strapped Pakistan to get free equipment from next door free of cost with very little transportation cost is nothing short of a miracle.Hence, the US embassy was compelled to step in and issue a statement which was more of a clarification after Pakistan’s Defence Secretary Asif Yasin Malik on Monday said Pakistan was going to receive military hardware which the US would leave behind in Afghanistan after it withdrew.
This is not the first time that bureaucrats and ministers of the present government have made conflicting statements with little understanding of the reality on the ground.In fact so confident was the defence secretary that he said that Pakistan was going to choose from the weapons which the US would leave behind in Afghanistan.
Quickly the US embassy stepped in to correct the situation when it issued a statement clarifying the actual position.The statement said: “Military equipment that has been determined to be excess can be made available through the worldwide excess defense articles (EDA) program, which is open to all eligible countries, including Afghanistan and Pakistan. This equipment will not be brought back with U.S. forces from Afghanistan as they redeploy elsewhere.
The US assists Pakistan through many security cooperation programs to build partnership capacity. Pakistan has requested a variety of Excess Defense Articles (EDA). The U.S. is currently reviewing Pakistan’s request for EDA.
If approved, this EDA is likely to be sourced from U.S. stock outside Afghanistan.The Department of Defense manages the process for identifying recipients for excess defense articles with State Department approval.
The decisions of who receives EDA are made on a case-by-case basis taking into consideration a range of factors including the need of potential recipients, regional security dynamics, how the recipient nations intend to use the equipment and the ability of an EDA recipient to sustain the equipment. Final determinations of EDA are still being made.”
Hence the statement is very clear that the equipment presently inside Afghanistan will not be taken back by the US forces. But it does not clarify what will happen to this equipment as there were reports that it would be destroyed.
But what the US embassy makes clear is that pending requests of Pakistan which approved, this EDA is likely to be sourced from US stock outside Afghanistan.On Monday the Pakistan media had carried a report from Kabul in which the US-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) Commander Gen Joseph Dunford had said the “United States Forces-Afghanistan does not provide or intend to provide any such equipment, including MRAPs (mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles), from Afghanistan to Pakistan”.
He said this when there was criticism inside Afghanistan over chances of US equipment being given to Pakistan free of charge.The report added that a testimony by General Dunford before the US Senate Armed Service Committee in which he had said that the US was planning to give 1,200 MRAP vehicles to Pakistan, Afghanistan and other allies.
“We’re in the process right now of seeing if there are any of our allies that can use those vehicles...I’ve put a stop on any destruction of any vehicles except those that are battle-damaged,” Gen Dunford had told the panel.
Pakistan can get defence equipment from US stock outside Afghanistan - thenews.com.pk
It has not been made clear from which spot on the globe outside Afghanistan.Normally, in such cases, the equipment comes free of cost but transportation charges are borne by the country which successfully qualifies to get the war equipment.
For cash strapped Pakistan to get free equipment from next door free of cost with very little transportation cost is nothing short of a miracle.Hence, the US embassy was compelled to step in and issue a statement which was more of a clarification after Pakistan’s Defence Secretary Asif Yasin Malik on Monday said Pakistan was going to receive military hardware which the US would leave behind in Afghanistan after it withdrew.
This is not the first time that bureaucrats and ministers of the present government have made conflicting statements with little understanding of the reality on the ground.In fact so confident was the defence secretary that he said that Pakistan was going to choose from the weapons which the US would leave behind in Afghanistan.
Quickly the US embassy stepped in to correct the situation when it issued a statement clarifying the actual position.The statement said: “Military equipment that has been determined to be excess can be made available through the worldwide excess defense articles (EDA) program, which is open to all eligible countries, including Afghanistan and Pakistan. This equipment will not be brought back with U.S. forces from Afghanistan as they redeploy elsewhere.
The US assists Pakistan through many security cooperation programs to build partnership capacity. Pakistan has requested a variety of Excess Defense Articles (EDA). The U.S. is currently reviewing Pakistan’s request for EDA.
If approved, this EDA is likely to be sourced from U.S. stock outside Afghanistan.The Department of Defense manages the process for identifying recipients for excess defense articles with State Department approval.
The decisions of who receives EDA are made on a case-by-case basis taking into consideration a range of factors including the need of potential recipients, regional security dynamics, how the recipient nations intend to use the equipment and the ability of an EDA recipient to sustain the equipment. Final determinations of EDA are still being made.”
Hence the statement is very clear that the equipment presently inside Afghanistan will not be taken back by the US forces. But it does not clarify what will happen to this equipment as there were reports that it would be destroyed.
But what the US embassy makes clear is that pending requests of Pakistan which approved, this EDA is likely to be sourced from US stock outside Afghanistan.On Monday the Pakistan media had carried a report from Kabul in which the US-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) Commander Gen Joseph Dunford had said the “United States Forces-Afghanistan does not provide or intend to provide any such equipment, including MRAPs (mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles), from Afghanistan to Pakistan”.
He said this when there was criticism inside Afghanistan over chances of US equipment being given to Pakistan free of charge.The report added that a testimony by General Dunford before the US Senate Armed Service Committee in which he had said that the US was planning to give 1,200 MRAP vehicles to Pakistan, Afghanistan and other allies.
“We’re in the process right now of seeing if there are any of our allies that can use those vehicles...I’ve put a stop on any destruction of any vehicles except those that are battle-damaged,” Gen Dunford had told the panel.
Pakistan can get defence equipment from US stock outside Afghanistan - thenews.com.pk
