ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is examining the possibility of seeking legal redress if the United States. Defaults in its commitment to deliver six F.16 planes out of the agreed 60 aircrafts to Pakistan air force in March this year.

“The Muslim” newspaper said some lawyers of international repute in the field of defence and corporate law have been approached by the Pakistan ministry for defence production.

It said consultations with Pakistani legal experts were also going, on to complete the preliminary work for suing the US government and the general dynamics, the manufactures of F16.

The U.S government under its foreign military support. (FMS) program is unlikely to give Pakistan the six planes as per the delivery schedule which was to start in March this year. U S President George Bush has already announced “no flexibility” in the attitude of Washington.

The U S slate department has asked Pakistan to freeze its nuclear program enabling President Bush to issue a certificate that Islamabad’s nuclear program is not weapon oriented.

“The Muslim” quoted defence expends to say that the non-delivery of the F16s next month would be another setback to Pakistan. Earlier, the Pakistan navy had suffered due to non-supply of the aircraft in November, last year.

The newspaper said quoting foreign officer sources Pakistan foreign secretary Shahrayar Khan was sent to Washington earlier this month for securing assurance from the state department about delivery of the F16s.

Pakistan has so far paid 320 million U S dollars in installments and seems ready to continue paying further till 1996, when the full contract of delivering 60 F16s is supposed to be completed, the agreement for purchase of the F16s was signed in 1989 when Benazir Bhutto was the prime minister. Pakistan had deposited about 70 million dollars till the time when the U § military and economic aid was stopped in October 1990 under the Pressler amendment. Meanwhile Shahrayar Khan had expressed the hope that by October this year, President Bush would issue a “favorable certificate” with regard to Pakistan’s nuclear program.

Article extracted from this publication >> February 28, 1992