The United States made it absolutely clear on Friday, days before President Asif Ali Zardari is to meet President Obama and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown in New York, that bulk of the money it will provide under the Kerry-Lugar Bill will not go directly to the PPP government, but to specific projects and purposes for which it is intended. Senior journalist, Shaheen Sehbai in a dispatch here said that the US government was still grappling with the issue of a huge trust deficit and would not feel comfortable with aid money getting into the hands of the PPP government despite efforts in Washington to repair and whitewash the image of PPP leaders. US State Department Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources, Jacob J. Lew in his briefing told this. Jacob Lew told the briefing: “On the question of aid, there, as any of you who have seen the press releases put out would know, they’re very much anxious to have as much of the assistance as possible flow directly to the Pakistani government. “We made clear that we’re looking at a variety of approaches, that we certainly intend to be supportive of Pakistani ministries where the programmes are ready to accept that support effectively, but that we also needed to look at the provincial level and to work with the traditional NGO community, and it wouldn’t be a one-size-fits-all approach.” The official made it obvious that instead of providing aid to the government to spend wherever it liked, they would look at the ministry projects, which are ready on a case-to- case basis and also provide direct aid to provinces and NGOs. That is what he meant by saying that “it would not be a one-size-fits-all approach.” Jacob Lew also spoke about his visit to Pakistan in general. “We focused on a number of issues. I think, as you all know, with the Kerry-Lugar programme being worked through now in Congress and the budget process working through, in terms of the appropriations, we’re ready to take the next step and put a detailed programme out there that really goes and specifies what forms of assistance will be provided. This is the latest indication that the U.S. government is still struggling to overcome with its trust deficit symptom and is not willing to give the funds on account of aid directly in the hands of the People’s Party, despite the Pakistani officials in U.S. trying hard for improving the image of the PPP leaders.
PNS Zulfiquar, Pakistan's first F-22 frigate has reached Karachi on Saturday.Commander Pakistan fleet Rear Admiral Asif Sandela received Pakistan Navy's newly acquired state-of-the art missile frigate.Pakistan Navy Spokesman Salman Ali talking to media said PNS Zulfiquar participated in exercises with other naval ships.The F-22P frigate was equipped with state-of-the-art weaponry and sensors including anti-surface missile, surface-to-air missile, guns, torpedoes, depth charge and air surveillance radar.Pakistan Navy has signed an agreement with China for construction of the four frigates-three in China and one in Pakistan.
The war ship was constructed at the Hudong Zhonghua Shipyard in Shanghai and formally handed over to Pakistan on 30th July.
President Asif Ali Zardari has rejected the Obama administration’s strategy of linking the policy on Pakistan and Afghanistan in an effort to end a Taliban insurgency and bring stability to the region.
US President Barack Obama earlier this year appointed senior diplomat Richard Holbrooke as his special representative to Pakistan and Afghanistan in a move intended to address these two states as a single arena of conflict.
‘Afghanistan and Pakistan are distinctly different countries and cannot be lumped together for any reason,’ Mr Zardari said in an interview with the Financial Times on the anniversary of his first year in office.
Mr Zardari’s comments reflect Pakistan’s unwillingness to be aligned in a joint policy framework with neighbouring Afghanistan, an approach referred to as ‘AfPak’. The president and his senior officials draw a distinction between a Pakistan with functioning institutions, diversified economy and a powerful national army, and Afghanistan, a state shattered by decades of conflict and ethnic divisions.
Ending the Taliban insurgency raging on both sides of the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan is only likely to be achieved by concerted military action by Nato forces fighting in Helmand and Kandahar and Pakistan’s army in Waziristan and other tribal areas along the border. Military experts say Taliban leaders travel across the Durand Line, the colonial era border, to avoid military pursuit.
Mr Holbrooke’s two-country mandate was also a recognition of Pakistan’s historic role in supporting the Taliban regime ousted from Kabul in 2001, and Islamabad’s former doctrine of ‘strategic depth’ into Afghanistan in case of a conflict with arch-rival India.
Mr Zardari said Mr Holbrooke had brought a ‘unique focus on relations with Pakistan’ and acknowledged the emphasis President Obama had put on Pakistan’s economic and energy needs.
The appeal by the husband of slain former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto for individual, rather than joint, focus comes ahead of a high profile meeting with President Obama and Gordon Brown, the UK’s prime minister, in New York later this month and a visit next month to Islamabad by Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state.
At these meetings, Mr Zardari is expected to appeal for more financial assistance to Pakistan, which he says is essential to ending the menace of terrorism.
‘Pakistan does not have the luxury of time. Given the severity of the internal security challenge the country is facing, it is critical that the economy is provided a strong stimulus as quickly as possible so that the maximum number of jobs are created in the shortest time,’ he said.
‘If international aid flows are delayed beyond the next few months, the country will be forced to cut development spending as well as the provision of critical social services. You can then imagine how big a setback that could be for the global war on terror.’
Many analysts say Pakistan and Afghanistan have a shared history and were badly affected by geopolitical shifts in the 20th Century
Pakistan and India have met on the battlefield many times in the last six decades. On paper, it would seem to be no contest, but reality paints a different picture. India may be five times bigger and have more than twice as many soldiers and weapons, but it has always been unable to overpower Pakistan. Seeing Pakistan as a major obstacle to its vain plans for regional hegemony, India wants nothing more than to subjugate it. The fake ‘peace and friendship’ rhetoric is merely a cynical ploy. Bringing Pakistan to heel is India’s most ardent wish, just like it has done with most of its bordering neighbours.
This is a fact that has been proven beyond any doubt by the covert rebellions that India is actively stirring and sponsoring in Baluchistan and the NWFP. Also, the staged incidents and terrorist acts that resulted in India reflexively pointing a finger at Pakistan, only for the world to later realise that it was an Indian hatched enterprise. The Mumbai drama and the attack on the Indian parliament are cases in point. India looks for any excuse, no matter how spurious, to destabilise, demoralise the Pakistani nation and to stoke tensions and turn global opinion against Pakistan.
It is only Pakistan’s brave armed forces that provide the necessary deterrence to prevent Indian adventurism. Highly capable, professional, well-equipped and world-renowned, Pakistan’s armed forces strike fear into the heart of the Indian generals who haven’t fallen for their own bollywood propaganda. Throughout the six decades of Pakistan’s existence, they have gone from strength to strength, fighting, flying and sailing fearlessly to war in defence of the homeland. In comparison, the Indian armed forces are bloated, arrogant and inefficient, a mere reflection of the national predilection for pen-pushing, bullying and boasting.
The atrocities committed by the vaunted Indian Army in its own country are well documented. Their inhuman treatment of their own people from the Assamese and Tamils to the Sikhs and Marathis is a matter of record. The brutalisation of Kashmir is clear for the world to see. Only an invading force bent on oppression and subjugation would pour over half a million troops into that beleaguered state. They are not there for the fresh air and picnicking. Only one force in the region is capable of rolling back Indian aggression. Only one force HAS resisted. It is the Pakistan Army, Navy, and Air Force.
LAND FORCES
On paper, India has a much higher number of weapons and equipment, but when the chips are down, its weaknesses are exposed. A case in point was the 2001 mobilisation of troops on the border following the farcically staged attack on the Indian parliament. It went very badly for the Indian army. At the cost of billions of dollars to the poverty-stricken Indian masses, the Army took several months to mobilise, and even when it did, it was in no position whatsoever to launch any kind of attack. The infantry proved to be less than ready, with dozens being killed in ‘friendly-fire’ attacks, and many taking their own lives due to ’stress’. The armoured vehicles were in a gross state of disrepair and the organisation was chaotic. The whole charade turned out to be more of an exercise in vanity and bluster than actual military sense.
The Pakistani response could not have been more different. Multiple Army Corps were mobilised within days and dispatched to the border efficiently and quietly. Equipment was readied and the determined troops stood their ground, ready to defend Pak Sarzameen. Pakistani officers could only look on in surprise at the antics across the border. Eventually, India decamped and withdrew having wasted billions on yet another useless adventure. But they should have known that attempting to intimidate and demoralise the Pakistan Army is an exercise in futility.
Pakistan was well prepared and its soldiers befitted with high morale. A great deal of credit for this goes to Pakistan’s defence production facilities which have done a very impressive job of equipping the large Army. Pakistan’s defence facilities produce almost every kind of weapon and ordinance that a modern army requires, from main battle tanks like the Al Khalid to infantry assault rifles like the venerable G3. Pakistan has no need to import equipment and is self-sufficient in the production of high-tech weaponry to international standards. The measure of the quality of products is proved by the fact that Pakistan in 2006 exported over $300 million dollars worth of high-tech arms to friendly countries, by far outstripping the pathetic arms exports of India. Pakistani defence companies, public and private, have built a solid reputation in the global arms market.
India on the other hand suffers from a defence industry that is laughable in its ability to deliver. The long-anticipated (over forty years to be exact) Arjun tank turned out to be a complete failure, its designers somehow overlooking the elementary fact that it was too wide to be transported by train and therefore useless. In addition, in recent exercises it suffered from numerous malfunctions that lead the Indian army to wash their hands of it and order over a thousand Russian T-90 tanks off the shelf from Russia instead. The Indian Government, always keen to save face, forced the army to buy a few token Arjun tanks (christened ar-junk by critics). The Arjun fiasco is perhaps the most famous example of fantastically expensive Indian defence catastrophes, but by no means is this an isolated occurence. Almost every piece of equipment conceived by the mad scientists of the infamous and ironically named DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation) has failed. In fact, the DRDO has produced more flops than Sunny Deol, and that’s saying something.
While the Indian army lurches from one rebellion to another, the Pakistan Army is efficient and highly organised, capable of applying deadly force to the nations enemies. The recent Army actions in Malakand and Swat are clear examples of the Army’s sound capabilities as it completely eliminated the TTP from entrenched positions within a matter of weeks. Such a feat of counter-insurgency is unprecedented. The Sri Lankan military was unable to pacify the Tamils for over 40 years and the Indian army, in spite of its brutal methods, is still regularly humiliated at the hands of the Kashmiri Mujahideen, Naxalites and countless other separatist rebel groups that have sprung up to challenge the so-called ‘biggest democracy in the world’.
NAVAL FORCES
Commensurate with its vain plans for regional domination, India has built a navy along the lines of the USN and Royal Navy. Thus it possesses dozens of surface ships of all kinds, destroyers, frigates and even an aircraft carrier. What the Indian naval brass haven’t realised yet is that the world has moved on without them, and in this age of anti-ship cruise and ballistic missiles, its large surface fleet has been reduced to a series of easy targets. Since the advent of the anti-ship cruise and ballistic missile, building a massive surface fleet is not only incredible expensive, it is incredibly stupid. No surface vessel in existence today is capable of avoiding a land based, air launched or sea launched saturation missile attack – not even the most high-tech American vessels. Put it this way, it would only take a small $50 million missile boat, carrying 4-8 primitive Harpoon style missiles to sink an aircraft carrier worth many billions. And if there is one thing the Pakistan Navy does not lack, it is missiles.
The Soviets knew this, and so they restricted their surface fleet and concentrated on submarine warfare, and the German Kriegsmarine circa WW2 knew this too. They relied on masses of U-boats to control the seas, not expensive surface vessels that would be more of a liability than a benefit. While the Indian Navy has gone down the foolhardy path, the Pakistani Naval brass have been far wiser. Knowing that they cannot match India in numbers, they have concentrated on securing territorial waters and securing sea lanes via high-tech submarines. The acquisition of the Augusta 90-B was a major step in the upgradation of the submarine fleet, and this is soon to be followed by the purchase of several German U-214 boats. This type is the most modern and sophisticated conventional diesel submarine in the world and far outstrips anything in the Indian arsenal. This has been supplemented by the purchase of small Chinese and possible Turkish frigates and large numbers of anti-ship missiles of the air launched and sea-launched variety. Pakistan is also proficient in the building of the only vessel it makes any sense to construct these days – the small missile-launching patrol boat.
The most important factor for a Navy is balance. This is what gives a Navy the ability to respond to any threat – a variety of vessels in small but not overwhelming numbers that can be utilised well. While the Indian Navy is bloated and suffers from a critical shortage of usable, serviceable ships and a submarine fleet in an appalling state of disrepair and neglect, the Pakistan Navy has capitalised on its strengths while minimising its weaknesses. If war were to break out tomorrow, the Indian navy, in spite of its superior numbers, would not dare to approach Pakistani territorial waters for fear of undetectable submarines lurking below and lethal cruise missiles raining overhead. Under those circumstances, being the absolute liability that it is, their vaunted but ultimately useless Indian aircraft carrier would most likely set sail at full steam – back to port.
AIR FORCES
The Pakistani air force is probably the most beloved of the nations three armed services. It has fought valiantly and heroically in all the wars it has partcipated in and faced down an enemy many times its size and capability. What it lacks in high-tech fighter jets it makes up for in ingenious tactics, meaning that Pakistani air force pilots are renowned the world over for their skill and bravery. Despite the technological gap, it is the emphasis on training and discipline and peak professionalism that gives Pakistani pilots the clear edge over their Indian adversaries.
In every single war, the Pakistan air force has outperformed the Indian air force and thus cemented its place in the nations imagination. It is the only air force in the world to have a 100% strike rate against the Israeli air force – a feat no Arab nation could achieve. As a result, today Pakistani pilots are invited to train the cadets and pilots of other air forces around the world and cadets from dozens of countries come to study at the ‘Top Gun’ style Pakistan Air Force Academy.
The Indians may have superior jets like the Russian Su-30 MKI, but Pakistan is catching up fast. The acquisition of the F-16 Block 50 from the US and the Chinese FC-20 will transform Pakistan Air force into a technological force to be reckoned with. This will be greatly helped by the induction of over 250 JF-17 multi-role jets co-produced with the Chinese. These will form the backbone of the air force for decades to come, replacing existing older aircraft.
While Indian pilots crash their poorly serviced planes by the dozens, Pakistani engineers have worked wonders in preserving and servicing the Air Force through times when parts and spares were difficult to come by due to sanctions. India is spending multiple billions on upgrading its fleet and is due to import hundreds of the latest fighter jets through its MRCA tender, but Pakistan is not standing still either. By 2015, the Pakistani Air Force will be revolutionised. Regardless of Indian belligerence, the induction of modern fighters, AWACS surveillance planes and upgraded air defence systems will make the skies over Pakistan impregnable.
MISSILES
Pakistan’s missiles are the envy of the world. Possessing both liquid-fuelled and the more useful solid-fuelled missiles, Pakistan has the entire region within range and most importantly, all of India. With short-range battlefield types all the way to the 3,500km Shaheen II, all of Pakistan’s missiles are field tested and operational and capable of ‘pinpoint’ accuracy. This is in marked contrast to the Indian missile programme that has known only a succession of humiliating and expensive failures. Recent reports from India indicated that of all of its claimed missile types, only the short-range Prithvi missile is operational and ready for war. The rest suffer from malfunctions and defects that have yet to be corrected. This embarrassing revelation is particularly painful to Indians if the Indian missile program was contrasted with its Pakistani equivalent.
Pakistan wins on all counts. Not only is it ahead, but it is widening the gap by developing longer range missiles that go into ICBM (inter-continental) range along with more advanced and powerful nuclear warheads. But the most exciting development by far in the ballistic missile field are the reliable reports that Pakistan is developing next generation missiles in the form of MIRV (multiple independent re-entry vehicles). As the name suggests, this allows multiple independent warheads to be deployed from the same missile, effectively disabling any possible anti-ballistic missile threats. It allows the devastation of the missile to be massively multiplied without significant increases in missile numbers. This technology is expected to be deployed on the Shaheen III and later types.
In addition to the ballistic missile arsenal, Pakistan is also way ahead when it comes to cruise missiles. When the now 700km range Babur was tested in 2005, the world was stunned and Indian commentators were left catatonic. Especially considering the fact that the Babur was produced in-country with no outside assistance save for a stray US Tomahawk missile or two. The Indians have no equivalent missile, and instead rely on the Brahmos import from Russia. The Brahmos is supersonic, but what it makes up for in speed it loses in agility and accuracy. While the Brahmos makes for good bollywood style PR, the Babur, and now the air launched Ra’ad are far more suitable for wartime, being cheaper, more flexible and more accurate. Longer range versions are being developed, particularly anti-ship varieties that will hunt down and sink ‘white elephants’ in the Indian ocean – the Indian surface fleet.
NUCLEAR CAPABILITY & DETERRANCE
Recent reports that the Indian nuclear of 1998 were ‘fizzles’ only confirms what the world already knows – India is far behind Pakistan when it comes to nuclear weapons technology and weaponisation. This has been confirmed not only by Western analysts but also by the Indians themselves. Started in 1972, the Pakistani nuclear programme has resulted today in an arsenal of over 200 nuclear warheads of both the highly-enriched Uranium and Plutonium varieties with the capacity to produce around 50 more each year.
Pakistan’s first nuclear tests were in May 1998, when six warheads were tested. It is reported that the yields from these tests were 12kt, 30 to 35kt and four low-yield (below 1 kt) tests. From these tests Pakistan can be estimated to have developed operational warheads of 20 to 25kt and 150kt in the shape of low weight compact designs and may have 300–500kt large-size warheads. Plutonium warheads are more operationally deployable with only 2–4 kg of plutonium needed for the same device that would need 20–25 kg of U-235. The low-yield weapons are probably in nuclear bombs carried on fighter-bombers such as the Dassault Mirage III and fitted to Pakistan’s short-range ballistic and cruise missiles, while the higher-yield warheads are probably fitted to the Shaheen and Ghauri series of ballistic missiles.
The sixth Pakistani nuclear test (May 30, 1998) at Kharan was a successful test of a sophisticated, compact, but powerful bomb designed to be carried by missiles. And that was over 10 years ago. The advancements in miniaturisation technology since then have been astounding. The plutonium based nuclear weapons are now reportedly being spiked with tritium. Only a few grams of tritium can result in an increase of the explosive yield by 300% to 400%. Pakistan has also built hard and deeply buried storage and launch facilities to retain a second strike capability in a nuclear war, as well as road-mobile missiles, air defences around strategic sites, and concealment measures.
India is no match for Pakistan when it comes to courage, professionalism and most importantly a ‘mission’ – to make Pakistan a force that will bring Jusice and Peace to humanity, for all times to come. The future belongs to this great nation and it’s emenies will soon become irrelevant.
After the 1965 India-Pakistan War, some Arab countries requested Pakistan to depute some its pilots to their air forces. Consequently, a small batch of PAF pilots were deputed to the air forces of Jordan, Syria, Iraq and Egypt. When the Arab-Israeli 'Six-Day' War broke out in 1967, these PAF pilots on deputation were requested by their host countries to participate in defensive combat operations.
On 5 June 1967, PAF pilot Flt. Lt. Saiful Azam, on deputation to the joint command of theRoyal Jordanian Air Force(RJAF) and theIraqi Air Force, was flying a defensive combat air patrol (CAP) over Jordan in an RJAF Hawker Hunter from Mafrak Air Base in Jordan. He was accompanied by 3 other RJAF Hunters. Their formation was informed by the ground controller of the presence of 6 Israeli Air Force IDF/AF Super Mysteres B-2s, which had crossed into Jordanian airspace. The 4 RJAF Hunters engaged the 6 IDF/AF Super Mysteres and Flt. Lt. Saiful Azam shot down an IDF/AF Super Mystere using the Hunter's 30 mm guns.With this kill, PAF pilots drew first blood against the IDF/AF. In this engagement, the Jordanians suffered no losses.
Two days later, in the morning of 7 June 1967, Flt. Lt. Saiful Azam. this time on deputation to the Iraqi Air Force (IrAF) was flying a defensive CAP in an IrAF Hawker Hunter (S. No. 702) over western Iraq from H3 Air Base in a formation of 4 IrAF Hunters. Ground controllers notified their formation of a formation of 8 Israeli aircraft - 4 IDF/AF Mirage IIICJs and IDF/AF 4 Vatour IIN Bombers - that had crossed into Iraqi airspace. The IrAF formation immediately engaged the Israeli aircraft and in the ensuing dogfight Flt. Lt. Saiful Azam shot down one IDF/AF Mirage IIICJ (Serial No. 6660) and one IDF/AF Vatour IIN Bomber with his Hunter's 30 mm guns. The M.IIICJ pilot was Gideon Dror, IAF, who ejected and was taken POW, while Vatour IIN bomber was the IDF/AF Vatour flight leader. In this engagement, the Iraqi Air Force suffered no loss.
RJAF and IrAF were flying under a joint command. Flt. Lt. S. Azam became the only pilot from the Arab side to have shot down 3 IDF/IAF aircraft within 72 hours and also the only pilot to have shot down 3 different aircraft types of the IDF/IAF. He was, subsequently, decorated by Jordan, Iraq, Syria and Pakistan.
The United States made it absolutely clear on Friday, days before President Asif Ali Zardari is to meet President Obama and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown in New York, that bulk of the money it will provide under the Kerry-Lugar Bill will not go directly to the PPP government, but to specific projects and purposes for which it is intended.
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