Rajnath raises U.S. support for Pakistan's F-16 fleet with Hegseth at ADMM-Plus in Cebu
In one line: At the 13th ADMM-Plus in Cebu on 28 October 2026, Rajnath Singh told U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth of India's concern over U.S. support for Pakistan's F-16s, while the two reviewed their 10-year defence framework.
Published 29 October 2026. Written by Pratidin from the reports linked at the end; every fact checked by a separate review before publishing. How we work
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on 28 October 2026 in Cebu, the Philippines, on the sidelines of the 13th ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus), held on 28 and 29 October under the Philippines' chairmanship. According to sources cited in reports, Singh conveyed India's concerns over U.S. sustainment and modernisation support for Pakistan's F-16 fighter fleet, and warned that advanced defence technology supplied to Pakistan could reach third parties, given Islamabad's close ties with Beijing. Singh called for a zero-tolerance approach towards countries that support, train or finance terrorist groups, and Hegseth reaffirmed U.S. support for India against cross-border terrorism.
The package at issue was notified to the U.S. Congress by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency on 8 December 2025. Estimated at $686 million, it includes 92 Link-16 data-sharing terminals, software and hardware modifications, encryption devices and spares, and is meant to extend the life of Pakistan's F-16 fleet through 2040. India has long objected to such support because Pakistan has used F-16s against India, including in the air engagement after the Balakot strike in 2019. The two ministers also reviewed progress under the 10-year Framework for the U.S.-India Major Defence Partnership, which they signed on 31 October 2025 in Kuala Lumpur on the sidelines of the 12th ADMM-Plus.
Their discussion covered operational readiness, technology sharing, defence industrial cooperation, maritime security, military exchanges and resilient defence supply chains. Singh described the India-U.S. defence partnership as a cornerstone of a free, open and secure Indo-Pacific. In Cebu he also met Japan's Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi; they agreed to speed up preparations for the fourth India-Japan Foreign and Defence Ministers' (2+2) meeting and a defence ministers' meeting in Tokyo. The episode shows a recurring tension: India deepens defence ties with Washington while the U.S. keeps a separate security relationship with Pakistan.
Prelims facts
- Rajnath Singh met U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on 28 October 2026 at the 13th ADMM-Plus in Cebu, Philippines, and raised U.S. support for Pakistan's F-16 fleet.
- The $686 million package, notified to the U.S. Congress on 8 December 2025, aims to keep Pakistan's F-16s flying through 2040.
- The 10-year Framework for the U.S.-India Major Defence Partnership was signed on 31 October 2025 in Kuala Lumpur.
- ADMM-Plus brings together ASEAN defence ministers and eight Dialogue Partners, including India and the U.S.; its first meeting was in Hanoi in 2010.
- India co-chairs the ADMM-Plus Experts' Working Group on Counter-Terrorism with Malaysia for 2024 to 2027.
Quick recall
- Where and when was the 13th ADMM-Plus held?
- Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, Philippines, 28 and 29 October 2026.
- Who is the U.S. Secretary of War that Rajnath Singh met in Cebu?
- Pete Hegseth.
- Value of the U.S. F-16 package for Pakistan notified in December 2025?
- About $686 million.
- Until when does the package extend the life of Pakistan's F-16s?
- Through 2040.
- When and where was the 10-year India-U.S. defence framework signed?
- 31 October 2025, Kuala Lumpur.
- Where was the first ADMM-Plus held?
- Hanoi, Vietnam, October 2010.
- Which ADMM-Plus Experts' Working Group does India co-chair for 2024 to 2027?
- Counter-Terrorism, with Malaysia.
- Which India-U.S. foundational agreement covers geospatial cooperation?
- BECA (2020).
Prelims practice question
Which of the following countries are among the eight Dialogue Partners in the ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus)?
1. India
2. Pakistan
3. New Zealand
4. Russia
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
- 1 and 2 only
- 1, 3 and 4 only
- 2, 3 and 4 only
- 1, 2, 3 and 4
Show answer
Answer: (b) 1, 3 and 4 only. The eight ADMM-Plus Dialogue Partners are Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, Russia and the United States. Pakistan is not a member.
Use this in UPSC Mains: previous-year questions
Recurring theme: India-U.S. defence partnership, the Pakistan factor and Indo-Pacific security
- How to use this
Shows the depth of Indo-U.S. defence ties for Indo-Pacific stability, and the Pakistan F-16 issue as a persistent limit.
- India and the U.S. signed a 10-year Framework for the Major Defence Partnership on 31 October 2025 and reviewed it in Cebu in October 2026.
- Rajnath Singh called the partnership a cornerstone of a free, open and secure Indo-Pacific.
- India still objects to the $686 million U.S. package extending Pakistan's F-16 fleet life through 2040.
Theme-related: the F-16 concern touches the Pakistan front, but the question is about border management and development, which this meeting does not address.
Mains practice question
India's growing defence partnership with the United States coexists with continued U.S. military support to Pakistan. Examine how India should manage this contradiction, with reference to the October 2026 Rajnath Singh-Hegseth meeting. (150 words)
Model answer
On 28 October 2026, at the 13th ADMM-Plus in Cebu, Rajnath Singh raised U.S. support for Pakistan's F-16 fleet with Pete Hegseth, even as both reviewed their 10-year defence framework.
The contradiction
- A $686 million U.S. package (notified December 2025) extends Pakistan's F-16 life to 2040, with 92 Link-16 terminals.
- Pakistan used F-16s against India after the 2019 Balakot strike; India fears technology leakage to China.
- Yet India and the U.S. signed a 10-year defence framework on 31 October 2025.
Managing it
- Raise concerns directly, as Singh did, while keeping cooperation on track.
- Deepen interdependence: co-production and technology sharing under the framework raise India's value to Washington.
- Diversify partners: Japan 2+2, ASEAN ties and domestic production.
- Multilateral pressure on terror financing: zero tolerance for states backing terrorist groups.
Conclusion
Strategic autonomy means pursuing U.S. ties on India's terms without expecting Washington to abandon Pakistan.
The basics
Why this matters
India-U.S. defence ties are a core GS2 topic, and the U.S.-Pakistan relationship is the classic irritant in them. The Cebu meeting of 28 October 2026 brings both together, at a forum, the ADMM-Plus, that Prelims likes to test.
The ADMM-Plus
The ADMM-Plus is the defence ministers' forum of ASEAN and its eight Dialogue Partners: Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, Russia and the United States. It first met in Hanoi in October 2010 and has met every year since 2017. The 2026 meeting, the 13th, was held on 28 and 29 October in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, with the Philippines in the chair. India co-chairs the forum's Experts' Working Group on Counter-Terrorism with Malaysia for 2024 to 2027.
How India-U.S. defence ties were built
The relationship rests on a series of agreements and designations. The U.S. named India a Major Defence Partner in 2016. India then signed the Foundational defence agreements, which allow secure communications, logistics support and sharing of geospatial data. In 2025 the two signed a new 10-year framework.
- 2002GSOMIA on protecting shared military information
- 2016U.S. names India a Major Defence Partner; LEMOA logistics pact
- 2018COMCASA on secure communications
- 2020BECA on geospatial cooperation
- 31 October 202510-year Framework for the Major Defence Partnership signed in Kuala Lumpur
- 28 October 2026Singh and Hegseth review the framework in Cebu
The Pakistan problem
The U.S. has supplied F-16 fighter aircraft to Pakistan since the 1980s. In December 2025 it notified a $686 million package to keep Pakistan's F-16s flying through 2040. India argues these jets have been used against it, including after the Balakot strike in 2019, and that U.S. technology could leak to China.
- Major Defence Partner since 2016
- 10-year defence framework signed in 2025
- Support against cross-border terrorism
- F-16 fleet sustainment package notified in December 2025
- 92 Link-16 terminals, life extension through 2040
- India fears diversion of technology
Reading the meeting
India did not let the F-16 issue derail the meeting: the ministers reviewed the framework and supply chains. This is how Strategic autonomy works in practice: deep cooperation with Washington, open disagreement on Pakistan, and parallel partnerships such as Japan's 2+2.
Go deeper
Why it matters for UPSC
India-U.S. defence ties, the Pakistan factor and regional forums like the ADMM-Plus recur in GS2 and Prelims. A 2020 Mains question asked about the significance of Indo-U.S. defence deals for Indo-Pacific stability.
The core idea
The ADMM-Plus gives India a regular seat with ASEAN and major powers. India-U.S. ties rest on the Foundational defence agreements and a 2025 framework. But U.S. support for Pakistan's F-16 fighter aircraft remains a sore point. India's answer is Strategic autonomy: raise objections openly while deepening cooperation.
Numbers and dates to remember
- 28 to 29 October 2026: 13th ADMM-Plus, Cebu, Philippines
- 8 December 2025: U.S. notifies F-16 package, about $686 million
- 92 Link-16 terminals; fleet life through 2040
- 31 October 2025: 10-year defence framework signed in Kuala Lumpur
- 2016: India named a Major Defence Partner
- 2010: first ADMM-Plus, Hanoi
Where to go next
- ADMM-Plus: the forum where they met
- Foundational defence agreements: the legal plumbing of the partnership
- F-16 fighter aircraft: why these jets matter to India
- Strategic autonomy: how India handles partners with other partners
Go deeper: Can India have a close U.S. partnership while Washington arms Pakistan?
India's concern. The F-16 package extends the life of Pakistan's fleet to 2040 and adds Link-16 networking. India points to the 2019 air engagement after Balakot and fears technology seepage to China, Pakistan's main arms supplier. See F-16 fighter aircraft.
The U.S. view. Washington has generally presented such packages as support for Pakistan's counter-terrorism capabilities and its sustainment obligations on aircraft it sold earlier. It also reaffirmed, in Cebu, support for India against cross-border terrorism.
Why the partnership still grows. The Foundational defence agreements and the 2025 framework create shared logistics, communications and data links that Pakistan does not have with the U.S. Co-production, technology sharing and supply-chain cooperation give both sides a stake. Forums such as the ADMM-Plus allow these issues to be raised face to face.
India's hedge. India pairs U.S. ties with Japan (the planned fourth 2+2), ASEAN, Europe and Russia, and with indigenous production. This is Strategic autonomy: no single partner gets a veto, and disagreements are stated openly without breaking cooperation.
ADMM-Plus
The ASEAN-centred defence forum where the meeting took place
In one line: The ADMM-Plus is a forum of ASEAN defence ministers and eight Dialogue Partners for practical security cooperation.
Members and working
The eight partners are Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, Russia and the United States. The first meeting was held in Hanoi in October 2010, and ministers have met annually since 2017. Experts' Working Groups cover areas such as counter-terrorism, maritime security, humanitarian assistance and peacekeeping; India co-chairs the counter-terrorism group with Malaysia for 2024 to 2027.
Why it is in the news
The 13th ADMM-Plus was held in Cebu on 28 and 29 October 2026 under the Philippines' chairmanship. Rajnath Singh used its sidelines to meet the U.S. and Japanese defence ministers.
Where to go next
Foundational defence agreements
The four pacts that underpin India-U.S. military cooperation
In one line: The foundational agreements are four India-U.S. pacts that let the two militaries share information, logistics, secure communications and geospatial data.
The four
- GSOMIA (2002): protection of classified military information.
- LEMOA (2016): reciprocal access to logistics such as fuel and repairs.
- COMCASA (2018): secure, encrypted communication equipment.
- BECA (2020): sharing of geospatial and mapping data.
Why it matters now
These pacts, the 2016 Major Defence Partner status and the 10-year framework signed on 31 October 2025 form the base that Singh and Hegseth reviewed in Cebu. They give India access to technology and interoperability that Pakistan's relationship with the U.S. lacks.
Where to go next
F-16 fighter aircraft
Why U.S. jets in Pakistan's hands trouble India
In one line: The F-16 is a U.S.-built multirole fighter made by Lockheed Martin, and Pakistan has flown it since the 1980s.
The Pakistan link
The F-16 is a core platform of the Pakistan Air Force. On 8 December 2025 the U.S. notified Congress of a package estimated at $686 million, with 92 Link-16 terminals, upgrades and spares, to extend the fleet's life through 2040. Link-16 is a secure tactical data link that lets aircraft share a common picture of the battlespace.
India's objection
India says Pakistan used F-16s against it after the 2019 Balakot strike and that upgraded technology could reach China. Singh raised this with Hegseth in Cebu on 28 October 2026.
Where to go next
Strategic autonomy
India's way of dealing with partners who also back rivals
In one line: Strategic autonomy is India's aim of keeping freedom of choice in foreign and defence policy, without being bound to any single power bloc.
In practice
India partners closely with the U.S. while buying from and engaging Russia, deepening ties with Japan, Europe and ASEAN, and building defence industry at home. It disagrees with partners openly when its interests differ, as on U.S. support for Pakistan's F-16s.
Why it matters here
The Cebu meeting is a case study: India objected to the F-16 package yet reviewed the 2025 framework and supply-chain cooperation, and in the same visit agreed with Japan to speed up a fourth 2+2 meeting.
Where to go next
Take the 29 October 2026 quiz: 30 Prelims-style questions with answers