MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On Saturday, Indian Foreign Secretary Subrahmanyam Jaishankar summoned US Ambassador Richard Verma to express dissatisfaction after Washington announced the US Department of State had approved the sale of eight F-16 combat aircraft and other equipment to Pakistan.
"We are surprised and disappointed at the Indian Government's reaction. Their army and arsenal stock is much larger and they are the largest importer of defence equipment. As regards F-16 sale, Pakistan and the United States closely cooperate in countering terrorism. US spokesperson clearly announced that the sale is to enhance precision strike capability," the ministry's spokesman, Mohammed Nafees Zakaria, said.
Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said on Saturday, India was disappointed at the US President Barack Obama Administration's decision on the fighters sale, stressing that New Delhi disagreed with the US rationale that the arms transfer would help to combat terrorism.
