ISLAMABAD, March 25: Pakistan on Friday welcomed a decision by the United States to sell it F-16 fighter jets, saying it demonstrated Islamabad’s close ties with Washington. The sale comes a week after US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice discussed the issue with both Pakistan and India.

“I confirm that the US government has agreed to sell F-16s to Pakistan. It will be the latest version of the aircraft,” Pakistani Information Minister Sheikh Rashid told AFP.

“We welcome this good gesture and it shows good friendship between Pakistan and the United States,” he said.

Announcing the decision in Washington, a senior US official said: “Existing military assistance will be supplemented by moving forward on the sale of F-16s to Pakistan and we’re notifying that to Congress today.”

“Although the numbers involved are relatively small, there is no set limit on what the United States is going to be willing to sell to Pakistan,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The decision was announced on the same day that Pakistan said it could assist an investigation by the UN’s atomic agency into whether Iran has been secretly developing nuclear weapons.