By Asif Shahzad
ISLAMABAD, April 30 (Reuters) – Pakistan’s Navy will be getting a fleet of advanced Chinese submarines, a statement from the military and a government official said on Thursday, a move to strengthen Islamabad’s maritime security as part of a growing defence cooperation with Beijing.
The subs are in addition to Chinese-made J10-C fighter jets, which were war-tested for the first time during last year’s Pakistan-India conflict.
Pakistan and China are longtime allies and their defence cooperation has been enhanced since the conflict erupted.
Islamabad says the Chinese-made planes were part of its air assault that downed India’s French-made Rafale fighter jets last summer.
A ceremony to commission the first of the submarines, which will be called Hangor, was held in Sanya, China, with Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and naval chief Admiral Naveed Ashraf in attendance, the military statement said.
It didn’t mention the number of submarines involved or any further details.
A Pakistani government official said the fleet would consist of eight submarines; four would be made in China and delivered to Islamabad, while another four will be made in Pakistan under a transfer-of-technology program.
“We will also be in a position to offer their exports under our defence production in future,” he said.
Ashraf called it “an important milestone to bolster our maritime defence and modernize our fleet with cutting-edge technology.”
Hangor class submarines – armed with state-of-the-art weapons, advanced sensors and air-independent propulsion – will be a key to preserving maritime order and stability in the region and play a role in deterring aggression, Ashraf said.
The news on the submarines came after Pakistan tested a number of missiles in recent weeks.
Pakistan and India have fought three wars since their independence from British rule in 1947.
(Reporting by Asif Shahzad; Editing by Thomas Derpinghaus)
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