WASHINGTON, Sept 13: A US congressional panel has called a hearing on the Bush administration’s decision to sell F-16 aircraft to Pakistan, probing allegations that Islamabad is using US anti-terrorism funds to buy weapons that can only be used against India.

The title of the hearing —“Defeating Al Qaeda’s Air Force: Pakistan’s F-16 Programme in the Fight Against Terrorism” — indicates that the programme may face strong criticism from US lawmakers.

The hearing was called by Congressman Gary Ackerman, a New York Democrat, who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia.

Last week, Democratic presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama also accused Pakistan of using US anti-terrorism funds for “preparing for a war against India”.

On Sept 16, the House sub-committee will seek witness testimony about the complete scope of the F-16 programme with Pakistan, including the number of planes, updates made to the existing planes, proposed armaments, schedule of delivery and source of payment. It will also probe how Pakistan has so far used US foreign military financing (FMF) for counter-terrorism and law-enforcement activities against Al Qaeda and the Taliban.

“The sub-committee will seek testimony on how these planes contribute to Pakistan’s efforts in the fight against terrorism and extremism, how the use of additional FMF to pay for mid-life updates to Pakistan’s existing F-16 fleet enhances those efforts and whether the sub-committee should expect further requests to use FMF provided to Pakistan for support of the F-16 programme,” said Mr Ackerman.

The sub-committee is also expected to examine what counter-terrorism equipment or programmes were foregone as a result of the Bush administration’s request on July 16 to use counter-terrorism funds for financing mid-life updates of Pakistan’s aging F-16 fleet. The panel will also look at how the F-16 programme fits into the broader US strategy in the fight against terrorism as well as into the overall US relationship with Pakistan.