ISLAMABAD, Nov 28: The United States pronouncements of lifting military sanctions so far remain meaningless for Pakistan armed forces as no request, made for much-needed spares, has been entertained by Washington, Dawn learnt here from authoritative sources.

Defence officials concerned with procurement of spares, particularly of Pakistan navy and air force, had taken a sigh of relief after Washington announced lifting of military sanctions against Pakistan. But, their hopes of getting spare parts appear to be fading as they have not received any positive response despite sending repeated requests for these parts.

A highly-placed defence official concerned with procurement of spares told Dawn that the manufacturers and concerned defence officials in the United States, when contacted by the defence procurement departments of the armed forces, replied that they had not been officially intimated by Pentagon about the lifting of military sanctions against Islamabad.

“What is more disturbing for Pakistani officials is that they have been asked not to make any further contacts till an official notification was received by them,” the official said.

Islamabad’s request for the supply of 28 F-16s fighter planes had already been turned down by the Bush administration and with the changing situation in Afghanistan, there is a growing fear that other pledges might not be honoured.

The US had slapped military sanctions on Pakistan in May 1998, when Islamabad carried out nuclear tests in response to a series of similar tests conducted by its arch rival India.

Though the imposition of sanctions had been generally regarded as a blessing in disguise, as it made Pakistan self-reliant in many areas, the need of military spare parts had not been totally over because of a wide-range of imported defence equipment used by the armed forces, particularly the air force.

While Pakistan Air Force requires spares for its F-16 planes, navy wants spares for its PC-3 Orion and even for French helicopters, parts of which are being developed in the United States under license.