PAKISTAN and China on Monday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to further deepen cooperation between the two armies as the latter’s Defence Minister General Wei Fenghe met Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa in Rawalpindi.
Defence cooperation between the two countries spans over decades. China has always provided a range of modern armaments to Pakistan to meet its defence requirements and that too without any strings. It will not be wrong to say that it is because of Chinese assistance that Pakistan’s defence industry today is marching forward on a strong footing. Technology transfers from China have enabled Pakistan to begin producing military hardware on its own. This is true with the JF-17 Thunder combat aircraft that now forms the backbone of our defence strategy. The fighter jet is supplanting the position previously held by American F-16Cs. Featuring integration with a wide variety of air-to-air and air-to-ground munitions, including active radar air-to-air missiles and air-launched cruise missiles, the JF-17, while a “budget” aircraft brings a lot of modern capability and modern ergonomics for its cost. It has also provided advanced naval warships as well as helping the country build submarines. Then the militaries of both the countries regularly engage in joint drills which enable them to learn from each other’s experience in matters pertaining to security. As regards the latest defence pact, we understand it will bring more value and further bring the two militaries close to each other. Given the belligerent posture of neighbouring India in the recent past, greater defence cooperation between the two countries is a need of the hour to put a stop to New Delhi’s hegemonic ambitions. India harbours sordid designs against multibillion dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project. It is patronizing terrorist groups and separatist elements in Balochistan to derail the mega project. It is a matter of satisfaction that governments in Pakistan and China are fully cognizant of this threat. Greater intelligence level cooperation as well as fast tracking CPEC related projects is the way forward to thwart the Indian designs.
