INDIA-PAKISTAN: CURRENT RELATIONS AND SECURITY CONCERNS

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CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2
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RIPPUB
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S
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16
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December 27, 2016
Document Release Date: 
August 28, 2013
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1
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Publication Date: 
September 14, 1983
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MEMO
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ii ogit ' Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 50X1 LoluoidgftcAgmo. Ol_Th(r) DIRECTORATE OF INTELLIGENCE 14 September 1983 India-Pakistan: Current Relations and Security Concerns Relations between India and Pakistan have improved somewhat over the past year, in our view. The two countries are attemp- ting to settle a variety of nonpolitical issues through their recently established Joint Commission. Progress on political talks, however, has stalled over substantive disagreements on the hatIllre of their relationship, New Delhi wants Islamabad to affirm India's view that the two countries would be limited to the bilateral settlement of disputes unless both sides agreed to outside mediation. India requires that both sides abide by a definition of nonalignment that specifically forbids either state. the right to grant military bases to a third power or enter into a foreign alliance In our view, India wants a permanent shelving of Kashmir dispute and Pakistani recognition of the ceasefire line as an international boundary. the current Pakistan is willing to put the Kashmir issue aside for now provided there is no change in the status quo. It will not agree to Indian interpretations of bilateralism and nonalignment, however. Both India and Pakistan view the other as its primary enemy and their improved relationship remains tenuous and could easily be disrupted. -- Pakistan believes India has never accepted its independent existence and it wants to make it a weak buffer state under Indian hegemony. Islamabad is particularly This memorandum was prepared by the South Asia Division, Office of Near Eastern and South Asian Analysis, in preparation for the Secretary of Defense's trip to Pakistan. Information as of September 12, 1983 was used in preparatin of this paper. Comments and queries are welcome and should he addressed to Chief, South Asia Division 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 M911 in Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 SECRET concerned that India and the Soviets will cooperate to impose their demands on Pakistan. India views Pakistan's strong ties with China with alarm and charges that Pakistan is using the Afghanistan crisis to strengthen itself against India. It opooses US weapons assistance to Pakistan and wants to maintain the Indian Ocean area free of superpower rivalry. Both countries have the bulk of their armed forces deployed along their common border. India's forces opposite Pakistan are larger and better equipped than those of Pakistan. Even with Pakistan's current arms modernization, we estimate that India's military superiority over Pakistan will continue to grow through the 1980s. Pakistan has little strategic depth opposite India. Most of its principal cities and major lines of communications are within 100 kilometers of the Indian border. A major breakthrough by Indian forces would immediately threaten Pakistan's most important political, cultural, and economic assets. Consequently, Pakistan's military strategy emphasizes a forward defense against India. Pakistan's armed forces have serious command-and-control, training, and logistic deficiencies, according to our analysis, which limit their effectiveness, even with the acquisition of new weapons. Pakistan has more strategic depth in the west and has adopted a strategy of defense-in-depth opposite Afghanistan. The deployment of only four divisions ir. the west supports this stategy; Pakistan would have time to move reinforcements from east to west before Afghan or Soviet forces could threaten vital Pakistani assets. 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 SECRET Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 ' Li Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 R Next 2 Page(s) In Document Denied Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 25X1 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 - WMJI.InIclign(cAscav ,II) (_2(605 DIRECTORATE OF INTELLIGENCE 14 September 1983 Afghanistan: Status and Prospects of the Insurgency Three and a half years after the Soviet intervention Afghanistan, the resistance has become an effective fo controls much of the country, Barring a drastic change in Soviet po in I7 we judge the fighting will continue over the next few years because existing Soviet forces will be unable to destroy the resistance. Despite improvements in weapons and training, however, we believe the insurgents will lack the firepower and organization to defeat major Soviet units. The Soviets are becoming more concerned about their difficulties in coping with the resistance Large-scale Soviet and Afghan operations this spring and early summer failed to weaken the resistance and the Afghan Government still controls only about 30 percent of the country; the same amount it controlled in July 1982. The insurgents have expanded the war with attacks in and around major cities, especially Kabul. The Soviets are apprehensive over increasing guerrilla activity in western Afghanistan and infiltration from Iran. The Soviets have failed so far to rebuild the Afghan Army into a force capable of effectively fighting the insurgents. Soviet costs in the war have been considerable, according to our estimates -- We estimate that over 16,000 Soviets have been killed or wounded in Afghanistan. The Afghan Army has suffered 50,000 casualties and nearly 80,000 men have deserted. This memorandum was prepared by the South Asia Division,? Office of Near Eastern and South Asian Analysis, in preparation for the Secretary of Defense's trip to Pakistan. Information as of September 12, 1983 was used in preparation of this paper. Comments and queries are welcome GO se uld be addressed to Chief, South Asia Division 25X1 22_5)(1 nprdaccifien in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 25X1 25X11 25X1 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 SECRET -- The insurgents have shot down or destroyed in attacks on airfields some 350 Soviet and Afghan aircraft (mostly helicopters) and nearly 150 more have been lost in accidents. Approximately 10,000 Soviet and Afghan armored vehicles and trucks have been destroyed or damaged. Direct Soviet costs in Afghanistan probably total around 12 billion dollars since the invasion. Nevertheless, we judge the Soviets still find the COStS bearable and apparently believe that their relations with many countries are recovering from the damage done by the invasion and that in the long run they will overcome the resistance. We believe there is no immediate prospect that the Soviets will decide to reduce their military effort in Afghanistan. We judge that the resistance fighters will become more politically sophisticated and militarily effective in the next two years, but they will remain vulnerable. -- The most serious threat to the resist4nce is civilian war- weariness apd the loss of popular support over the long term that would directly affect the will to continue fighting. Cooperation among insurgent bands has grown, but because of deep ideological, political, and religious differences, we do not foresee a united resistance movement emerging in the next few years. The Soviets and the Kabul regime are likely, in our view, to continue and probably increase a wide variety of covert and overt activities--such as arranging truces, encouraging defections, and subverting groups--to exploit insurgent weaknesses inside and outside of Afghanistan. There are some Soviet options--massive troop reinforcement or a widespread scorched earth policy against civilians--that might drastically reduce the insurgency in the next two years. -- Moscow would, however, be reluctant to assume the high economic, political, and military costs associated with these options, in our judgment. The Soviets have started a number of economic, educational, social, and political programs in Afghanistan that they believe will eventually turn the country into a viable Soviet-dominated communist state, Because of wide- 25X1 spread insurgent activity and opposition from the Afghan people, however, these programs have been implemented in only a few 25X1 areas. 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 2bAl SECRET Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 uvwd Imdlgikc,A;.pkv ml)C2,)1,(r) DIRECTORATE OF INTELLIGENCE 14 September 1983 Pakistan: Steadfastness on Afghanistan Pakistani leaders view the Soviet presence in Af hanistan as a Strategic threat. They believe, the Soviets want to gain permanent overland access to the Persian and the Indian Ocean littoral. They are worried that Moscow increase its political and military pressure on Pakistan it has consolidated its hold on Afghanistan. they are concerned that Moscow will collaborate with India to neutralize and divide Pakistan--perhaps by a combination of external military pressure and subversive meddling in Pakistan's unstable domestic politics. ;ulf C will once Ne believe Pakistan continues to engage the Soviets in periodic talks on Afghanistan for a number of reasons: The UN-sponsored talks provide Pakistan both with a way to test Soviet intentions in Afghanistan and maintain international support for its position on Afghanistan. Pakistan keeps its channels open to Moscow because it worries that the West will in time forget about Afghanistan or reach an agreement over Pakistan's head as part of a larger East-West settlement. The refugee problem inside Pakistan has become a major concern to Islamabad. Rising local resentments and concern in the Army that some 3 million Afghan refugees will become a permanent burden for Pakistan have added a note of urgency to Pakistan's search for a political settlement. So far, however, relations between the Afghan refugees and locals--who belong to the same ethnic group-- have been peaceful. This memorandum was prepared by the South Asia Division, Office of Near Eastern and South Asian Analysis, in preparation for the Secretary of Defense's trip to Pakistan. Information as of September 12, 1983 was used in preparation of this paper. Comments and auPri9s are welcome and should be addressed to Chief, South Asia Division sa]CRET Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 ,25X1 `25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 SECRET We doubf Islamabad is ready to shift its stand on the issue in ways .that would damage US interests. So far in the indirect talks at Geneva, Pakistan has remained steadfast in its insistence that a political settlement is contingent on withdrawal of Soviet troops. According to statements by senior Pakistani officials: a -- Islamabad supports the Afghan insurgents in order to make it more. difficult for the Soviets to consolidate their hold on Afghanistan. An active insurgency is crucial to Pakistan's diplomatic campaign to keep Afghanistan- before world opinion as an issue that can be settled only by the withdrawal of Soviet troops. A political settlement acceptable to the Zia regime would have to permit the voluntary return to Afghanistan of the Afghan refugees in Pakistan. Islamabad knows the refugees will not return home unless the Soviets first withdraw their troops. Pakistan has consistently refused to recognize the Babrak regime. Islamabad knows that recognition is its trump card. It is doubtful that it would play it until a pull- out of Soviet troops is. largely completed and most of the refugees have returned home. Pakistan's current policy on Afghanistan receives strong support from conservative religious parties at home and vital friends abroad, such as Saudi Arabia, China, and the US. Pakistan's strong stand on Afghanistan and its support for an active insurgency enables it to argue more effectively with the Saudis, the US, and China that it needs and deserves enhanced diplomatic, economic, and military support. SECRET Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 25X1 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 coltrai iniciiiscriccAserks Washing, In. C 20505 DILtECTORATE OF INTELLIGENCE 14 September 1983 Pakistan: implications of Military Commitments to Arab States Pakistan's approximately 18,000 military personnel stationed in the Middle East and North Africa are becoming an important vehicle for achievement :of Islamabad's foreign policy goals. Pakistan has reaped significant benefits from the program, according to our analysis: -- Salary remittances have provided an economic boost. -- Islamabad has acquired new sources of arms procurement. -- Pakistan has become one of the largest non-Arab recipients of financial support from the oil-rich Arab states. Pakistan's military personnel have gained valuable training on advanced Western and Soviet military equipment?including Soviet aircraft?which has given them a netter u-iderstandin of the capabilities of the Indian Air Force. Je believe the military assistance, however, also carries risks: -- The longer the Pakistani troops stay abroad, the greater the risk that Pakistan will become embroiled in local or regional conflicts to which it is not a party. -- Pakistan's international image is tarnished by charges that it provides "soldiers for hire" to radical regimes such as Libya. morale within the armed forces Louid oe damaged by the disparity between overseas and domestic salaries and by discrimination against Pak' Shia personnel by the recipient countries. ani This. memorandum was prepared by the South Asia Division, Office of Near Eastern and South Asian Analysis, in preparation for the Secretary of Defense's trip to Pakistan. Information as of September 12, 1983 was used in preparation of this paper. Comments and queries are welcome a should be addressed to Chief, South Asia Division 25X1 25X1 rnnv Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 SECRET We judge Pakistan will continue and may even expand its military ties with the Middle East in order to ensure Arab political support and economic assistance. In our view, as long as Pakistani personnel demonstrate competence and Pakistan maintains a stable and moderate government with Islamic credentials, there will be a market for its military personnel in 25X1 the Middle East and North Africa. We believe that concern over external and internal threats to stability brought on by the strife in Lebanon, the continuing Iran/Iraq conflict, and Iran's Shia religious fanaticism might well prompt the Gulf states to request even larger foreign military contingents. 25X1 Our analysis suggests, however, that several factors could slow an expansion of military ties or lead to a reduction in requests for military assistance: -- The limited capacity of the recipient countries to absorb more military personnel. -- Competition from other states to supply military advisers. -- The risk that Pakistan could be drawn into regional conflicts. -- The limited number of skilled technical personnel in Pakistan. The United States generally benefits from Pakistan's military assistance program. Cooperation between Islamabad and the Arab States strengthens the military establishments of moderate governments while dampening Pakistan's financial demands on the United States and minimizing the US visibility in this sensitive region. Only in the training of Libyan pilots and small numbers of Palestinian guerrillas do Pakistan's military ties run counter to US interests. We assess that a setback to the military assistance program, accompanied by a reduction in Arab economic assistance to Pakistan, would increase political and economic strains in Pakistan and increase Islamabad's requests for US economic and military aid. SECRET Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 25X1 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 NOFORN NOCONTRACT ORCON LC1111.II 11111111V,C11(C MINIIIngo[11?,_Th,M DIRECTORATE OF INTELLIGENCE 14 September 1983 Pakistan-China-US: Arms Technology Transfer We believe Pakistan will probably safeguard the new US arms it receives to protect the arms supply relationship unless major strains develop in relations with the united States. Pakistan still considers its relations with China more durable than those with the United States and in the past has given Beijing access to western arms technologies. Nonetheless, Pakistan reaards advanced US weapons as the key to its military to continue the security assistance program, modernization wants and -- Islamabad is aware of US concern about unauthorized transfers of US weapons to China and has signed a General Security of Military Information Agreement with the United States. -- The resolution last winter of the ALR-69 radar warning receiver issue to Zia's satisfaction and the delivery of the first F-16s has strengthened Islamadad's faith in the US security relationship. Pakistan has close military ties with China that include a past history of transferring arms technology and agreements with Beijing on joint weapons development and technology exchange. French During his visit to Beijing in November 1982, President Zia signed an agreement that contained provisions for Chinese-Pakistani cooperation in weapons development and production. This memorandum was prepared by the South Asia Division, Office of Near Eastern and South Asian Analysis, in preparation for the Secretary of Defense's trip to Pakistan. Information as of September 12, 1983 was used in preparation of this paper. Comments and queries are welcome-and should be addressed to Chief, South Asia Division SECRET Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 LOA! 25X1 25X1 25X1 LA I 25X1 25X1 25X1 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 SECRET Circumstantial evidence suggests Pakistan gave China access to the US AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missile in 1982, probably to facilitate modifications to Chinese-made attack planes that Pakistan was acauiring. e believe Pakistan will protect US arms technology as long as the US security relationship is perceived in Islamabad as providing tangible benefits. Major strains in relations with the United States over the nuclear- issue or new disputes on arms agreements could undermine Islamabad's confidence in the United States and threaten the security relationship, possibly causing Pakistan to share US weapons or technology with China. Even if US-Pakistani relations remain strong, however, there is that China at some point will gain access to Pakistan's given the intimacy of Pakistan's ties to China. SECRET a risk US arms, Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 LoltallitameAncv 0::1,41W1,4Mc'Cl5(), DIRECTORATE OF INTELLIGENCE 14 September 1983 Pakistan: Prospects for President Zia President Zia ul-Hag is coping successfully with the current disturbances in Pakistan--the-most serious threat to his rule so Ear. We believe his regime's capable handling of serious anti- government rioting in Sind province coupled with the unwillingness of Pakistanis in other provinces to join the protest movement increase the chances that Zia and the Army will continue to guide Pakistan's political future for at least the next one to two years. ? Zia's authoritarian regime has avoided overly repressive policies, though it has dealt firmly with organized demonstrations. It has given the country more than six years of domestic stability and substantial economic progress. -- Zia also has dealt effectively with external threats. fie has stood up to the Soviets on Afghanistan, while keeping channels open to a negotiated settlement; he has improved relations with India; and he has succeeded in gaining major economic aid and arms assistance from the United States. The President ultimately depends on the Army to remain in power. Most senior officers support Zia's plan for a phased return to civilian government and a permanent oversight role for the armed forces -- No ruler, however, can be certain of the Army's support if it is called upon to nut down civil disorders, particu- larly in the all-important province of Punjab. Zia's main opposition, the Movement for the Restoration or Democracy (MRD), a coalition of eight opposition parties, is This memorandum was prepared by the South Asia Division, Office of Near Eastern and South Asian Analysis, in preparation for the Secretary of Defense's trip to Pakistan. Information as GE September 12, 1983 was used in preparation of this paper. Comments and queries are welcome and should be addressed to Chief, South Asia Division SECRET Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 ' SECR? poorly organized and so Ear has lacked both a popular issue or an effective leader to e a nationwide anti-Zia campaign. The protest movement in Sind Province this summer was launched largely by the Pakistan People's Party of former Prime Minister Bhutto. The PPP has strong support in Sind, Bhutto's home province, and succeeded in rousing violent protests by playing on local grievances against the Punjabi-dominated government and Army. The PPP has substantial support among the urban and rural poor of Punjab, but has found it difficult to mobilize this support in the absence of a strong leader. Most of the PPP faithful look to Bhutto's daughter Benazir, but she has been kept under house arrest for the past two and one-half years. President Zia has promised to hold provincial and national elections by March 1985, amend the Constitution to creatc a strong presidential system, and withdraw martial law. His statements suggest he will bar hostile opposition parties-- including the PPP?from participating in the elections. These parties and some influential interest groups believe they are losing ground under Zia and could coalesce against him. Given the right, circumstances, we believe a nationwide opposition movement could arise rapidly and with little warning. In such an event, the Army probably would replace Zia with another general who would negotiate a return to civilian -rule on terms the Army could accept. In our view, the Army would attempt to preserve the present US-Pakistan relationship, but if a Pakistan People's Party government succeeded in taking over, US- Pakistan ties, as well as Pakistan's stand on Afghanistan, Probably would be significantly weakened. 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 25X1 SECRET npclassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 /A- Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 Central Intelligence ,'"\encv Waslitrip,r1.0.C20S05 DIRFCTORATE OF INTELLIGENCE 14 September 1983 Pakistan: Perceptions of Relations with the US US-Pakistani relations have improved since 1980, but these gains are fragile. The two nations' Afghanistan policies and regarding Soviet aims in South Asia are convergent 25X1 caution interests. However, 25X1 US arms embargoes in 1965 and 1971 plus the temporary suspension of economic aid in 1979 have convinced most Pakistanis that Washington is an unreliable ally. 25X1 25X1 Pakistani otticials in general are receptive to expanding contacts with the US. Few Pakistani officials believe, however, that the US would support Pakistan if it were attacked by India, and there are doubts about US willingness?and capability?to co,71e to Pakistan's assistance in the event of a Soviet ')Z V1 attack. some army officers 25X1 believe Zia has placed too much trust in Washington and believe that the US may again abandon Pakistan after the Afghanistan conflict is resolved. -- According to Pakistani weapons is the support. The officials, the sale of advanced yardstick by which Islamabad measures US F-16s are especially welcome and are a crucial symbol of the US commitment to Pakistan. 21i Ponular nercep ons of the US are more 'ambiguous, 225X1 -- US military and economic assistance is widely publicized and appears to have made a positive impact. However, most Pakistanis reject US Middle East: policy, which they charge This memorandum was prepared by the South Asia Division, Office of Near Eastern and South Asian Analysis, in preparation for the Secretary of Defense's trip to Pakistan. Information as of September 12, 1983 was used in preparation of this paper. Comments and queries are welcome and should be addressed to Chief, South Asia Division SECRET nprdaccifien in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 . ;. SECRET is biased in favor of Israel. Many are suspicious that the US remains hostile to Tehran because it cannot tolerate a "truly Islamic government" and believe Pakistan would be subject to similar pressure should it follow Iran's example. Many Pakistanis, including those with ties to the military and the, bureaucratic .elite, condemn US policy on nuclear nonproliferation as applied to Pakistan. They assert it is intended to prevent the development of domestic nuclear Power facilities and to retard Pakistan's ability'to achieve economic independence. They reject as hypocritical US claims it is attempting to stop the spread of nuclear weapons and point to Washington's willingness to continue assistance to India, which has exploded a nuclear device. Zia's political opponents are attempting to exploit US military and economic assistance to portray the President as a US puppet. Politicians on the left and center repeatedly assert that Zia could not survive without US support. Scattered anti-American incidents occured during recent anti-regime demonstrations in Sind Province. SECRET Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 25X11 4J^I 25X1 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1 R Next 3 Page(s) In Document Denied Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/10/22 : CIA-RDP10C00522R000100520001-2 25X1