Bureaucratic Politics and the Spoiled F-16 Sale to Indonesia

摘要

On June 6, 1997 the office of U.S Senator Russ Femgold (D-WI), a member of the East Asia and Pacific Subcommittee of the Foreign Relations Committee, released a statement applauding Indonesian President Suharto's decision to drop efforts to purchase nine U.S. F-16 fighter jets. Feingold stated he was long opposed to providing advance military equipment to the Indonesian government because of concerns over its 'abysmal human rights record in East Timor'. The Indonesian government stated it dropped the offer in frustration because of Congressional delays and a flawed U.S. foreign military sales policy. Despite efforts spearheaded by the United States Air Force and the State Department to see the deal through, the Clinton Administration withdrew its support to broker this $200 million dollar deal under pressure from Congress and other interest groups. In fact, Congressional concerns for Indonesia's human rights record may have had little impact on President Clinton's decision to withdraw support for the deal The little drama surrounding the F-16 sale to Indonesia clearly demonstrates Mile's Law of Bureaucratic Politics. Specifically, how any group sees an issue depends upon where the actors stand. This paper looks at how a number of actors seeking different goals used the Clinton Admmistration's plan to broker the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Indonesia to advance their own agendas.