LAHORE: A report by Al Jazeera questioning the Pakistan Army’s memorandum of understanding with US drone maker Powerus relies heavily on anonymous sources and implies links that the non-binding deal itself does not show, a review of the report by The Lahore Times found.
Powerus said in September it had signed a non-binding MoU with the Pakistan Army and received a limited initial order, after its delegation met Field Marshal Asim Munir. The military’s media wing said the talks covered defence procurement, production and long-term capacity building. The value and systems involved have not been disclosed.
Al Jazeera’s Sept 23 report noted that the company, partly owned through a vehicle backed by two of President Donald Trump’s sons, had licensed an Indian firm to make one of its interceptors, and that two of its executives have Israeli military or defence-industry backgrounds. Much of its criticism came from unnamed former officials.
Analysts quoted in the same report offered a different reading. Quwa’s Bilal Khan noted that Pakistan has long accepted Israeli-origin components inside US and European systems, and the MoU, by the company’s own account, carries no purchase obligation and is subject to US approvals.
Pakistan buys military hardware from China, Turkiye and Western suppliers, and its own industry produces drones. A small, non-binding agreement with a US company is consistent with warming ties with Washington and does not, on the available record, signal any change in Pakistan’s position on Israel, which it does not recognise. ISPR, the Foreign Office and the Information Ministry did not respond to Al Jazeera’s requests for comment.
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