Sunday, March 27 2005 10:08 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: A day after Washington offered to supply F-16 or more advanced F-18 fighter jets to India, New Delhi yesterday (Mar 26, 2005) said it would consider buying sophisticated warplanes from American companies if they match Indian requirements.

"Recently, American companies, which manufacture fighter aircraft and weapons, are willing to work with us and they have submitted some proposals to us," Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee said in Kolkata.

"Naturally, we will discuss them (proposals) and if military aircraft and other weapons, needed for our national interest, are available from the US, we will certainly consider them," he said.

Dismissing the sale of US fighter planes and sophisticated weapons to Pakistan as 'nothing new', Mukherjee said, "Cooperation in economic and other areas between US and India has increased manifold, but there is so far no Defence agreement between the two countries."

To a question about Washington's willingness to sell F-16s to India, the Defence Minister said New Delhi was looking for several military aircraft and would prefer the one suiting the country's interest.

Reports coming from Islamabad claim that the US decision to sell F-16 aircraft to Pakistan was a major foreign policy success, Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri said expressing surprise over Indian criticism of Washington's move, which would not alter overall balance of power in the region.

In a statement in Islamabad, Kasuri said that he was surprised over the Indian reaction, as he believed that maintenance of conventional and strategic balance in South Asia is in the overall interest of the people of the region.

"While our Defence capabilities will improve, however, it will not change the overall balance of power. This is not at all in discord with the emerging thaw in relations with India."

Pakistan is completely committed to the on-going peace process with India, which we hope lead to resolution of all outstanding issues, including Jammu and Kashmir," he said.

The purchase of F-16 aircraft by Islamabad must be seen in the context of the conventional asymmetry between Pakistan and India, he said. Pakistan faces a formidable challenge in terms of approaching conventional balance vis-a-vis India.

"The purchase of F-16s must also be seen in the context of enormous increase of Indian Defence Budget in the recent years," he said.

During 2000-2001 India increased its Defence Budget by 28 per cent. The increase in the Indian Defence allocation is equal to Pakistan's entire Defence Budget, he said adding during 2001-02 New Delhi further increased its Defence Budget by 13.8 per cent.