I rise to offer this amendment which was approved unanimously by a voice vote by the Committee on Foreign Affairs yesterday for the purpose of making it possible for us to proceed with a military and economic assistance program for Pakistan. while at the same time significantly strengthening our nonproliferation objectives not only in the subcontinent but around the world. 30218 Co Over the course of the last few months the Committee on Foreign Affairs. through the Subcommittee on Asian and Pacific Affairs. the Subcommittee on International Economic Policy and Trade. and the Subcommittee on Scientific and Security Affairs. has exhaustively considered this problem. We have held a total of six public hearings and three executive sessions. and we heard a wide variety of witnesses who testified about the problems confronting our country in this critically important part of the world. I think it is fair to say that out of those hearings a very strong consensus emerged that with 85.000 Soviet troops in Afghanistan and 2 million Afghan refugees in Pakistan. there was a clear and compelling case for an American military and economic aid program to Pakistan in order to help Pakistan deal with this new threat not only to its territorial integrity but to its political stability and independence. There were. to be sure. some significant differences among the members of our committee and on the part of the witnesses we heard concerning the wisdom of selling 40 F16 advanced combat jet aircraft to Pakistan. Those differences were reflected in a 13to13 vote within the Committee on Foreign Affairs on a resolution of disapproval designed to prevent the sale of the F16s to Pakistan from going forward.
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refugees