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Closing the gaps:
Pakistan's new naval strategy
Pakistan's long-established defense ties with Beijing are being further cemented by an increasing reliance on China to fulfill its naval hardware requirements.
Farhan Bokhari reports.
Almost two years after the Pakistan government formally approved a proposal from the Pakistan Navy to negotiate with China for the purchase of six new submarines, the country's economic difficulties are making it harder to close what could become Pakistan's largest-ever defense contract in terms of its value.
Notwithstanding China's growing relationship with Russia for the joint production of military hardware including submarines, Pakistan is not necessarily set to immediately become a beneficiary of improving Sino-Soviet ties.
In the past, Pakistan co-produced with China and successfully launched the JF-17 Thunder fighter aircraft for its Pakistan Air Force (PAF). One of the PAF's main frontline fighter planes, the JF-17 is equipped with the Russian manufactured RD-93 engine and stands out as an example of Sino-Pakistan co-operation with Russian input.
Analysts suggest Pakistan's acute budgetary constraints may have delayed the closure of the Chinese submarine deal. However, they still believe an accord will be reached in due course. "Pakistan and China have a long-trusted relationship," a senior Pakistani defense ministry official stated. "The submarine deal will happen at some stage:"
Pakistani officials believe that China will eventually offer substantial concessions on the pricing and repayment terms, to make the contract affordable for Pakistan. A deal is considered essential by naval planners to recapitalize a submarine force currently comprising three Agosta 90B (Khalid-class) submarines purchased in the 1990s and two ageing Agosta 70 (Hashmat-class) boats dating from the late 1970s.
The decision to buy Chinese submarines came after the Pakistan Navy all but abandoned plans for the purchase of the Type 214 boats produced by Germany's ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, mainly because of financial considerations. The purchase of new submarines is also considered by Pakistan's defense planners as a strategic Objective; in particular, there are plans to eventually equip them with some form of submarine-launched ballistic missile to address the one remaining gap in the country's nuclear delivery capability.
Pakistan is the world's newest entrant to the nuclear club, having conducted sixnuc1ear tests on 28 May 1998 - just three weeks after an earlier series of tests by neighboring India. "Ultimately, Pakistan is becoming increasingly vital for China from a strategic point of view and they [China} have made a commitment to us [Pakistan} for fulfilling our vital needs," the official said.
Historically, China has confined its naval presence to its coastal waters. But Pakistani planners believe China's emergence as a major power and the modernization of the Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) will see China's naval forces eventually operate in the Indian Ocean Region (lOR), off Pakistan's southern coast.
For now, the Pakistan Navy's principal rival remains the Indian Navy. The two navies have fought twice during all-out wars between the South Asian neighbors in 1965 and 1971, and still remain potential adversaries in the lOR.
The Pakistan Navy's main mission remains that of keeping the sea lanes open to and from Pakistan's southern coast line most notably to and from Karachi port and the newly emerging deep sea port at Gwadar in the southwestern Baluchistan province, near the Strait of Hormuz, which leads to the shipping lanes of the oil-rich Middle East.
While India and Pakistan have taken steps to normalize relations through measures such as liberalizing trade, analysts say their long-term divide will continue until such time that the dispute over the northern mountainous state of Kashmir is resolved. "The dispute in mountainous Kashmir will keep on fueling the defense build-up across the board for the army, air force, and the navy," said the official.
Consequently, Pakistan's top military planners are eager to underline their determination to keep up with their planning. "We are keeping our eyes and ears open to any misadventure and to emerging challenges in the region," was how Admiral Asif Sandila, chief of the naval staff, articulated his main task in carefully delivered public remarks last year.
For Adm. Sandila, maintaining the deterrence of his force is a key challenge. But two other elements have also come into play.
First, the Pakistan Navy became a partner of an international coalition deployed in the lOR under the banner CTF-150 (Coalition Task Force 150), which is dedicated to fighting international piracy.
According to senior naval planners, this was essential for securing a globally recognized profile for the service as a force dedicated to the stabilization of global security interests.
Second, the navy continues to consolidate its ties with China. In part, this has been done through the purchase from China of new hardware such as frigates, naval support helicopters, and fast attack missile boats.
In the latest such purchase, China in April 2012 handed over to Pakistan the first of two Azmat-class fast attack craft (missile). Based on the Houjian dass (Type 03712) missile craft in service with the PLAN, the Azmat class is designed to carry eightC-802A (YJ-83/CSS-N-8 ('Saccade') surface-to-surface missiles, two 25 mm guns (in a twin mounting forward), and two 12.7 mm machineguns. A similar second craft is being built by Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KSEW) under a transfer of technology agreement. This deal followed China's previous agreement in which it sold four F-22P Sword-class frigates to Pakistan.
These were a modification of the Type 053H3 Jiangwei II frigates. The deal also involved collaboration between KSEW and Chinese shipbuilders.
According to a western defense official in Islamabad, while the frigates will help the Pakistan Navy continue its missions in distant waters, the fast attack craft are intended to support the Pakistan Navy's mission to keep sea lanes open.
'Degree of deterrence'
"Pakistan's naval philosophy is built on maintaining a certain degree of deterrence" that blocks India's ability to "force a blockade on Pakistan", the official stated.
Additionally, western officials say, Pakistan is quietly working with China to arm the PAF with long-range missiles designed to target Indian naval vessels in the event of a blockade. "Even if these missiles are never used, at least Pakistan wants to have the assurance of being able to breakthrough any Indian deployment," said a second western defense official in Islamabad.
Meanwhile, in a move by Pakistan that was widely seen to lure China into the lOR, the country in August 2012 revealed that it was cancelling a contract with the Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) to manage the Gwadar Port. The PSA signed a 40-year contract in 2007 to manage the port, whose construction earlier had been financed by China. Since the contract was taken by the PSA, Pakistani officials complained that the authority failed to live up to its obligations to further develop the infrastructure surrounding the port. The cancellation of the contract will likely be followed by "a new arrangement where a Chinese operator will come to manage the contract", the official said.
Other Pakistani officials said that China has quietly offered to build a road and rail-link from Gwadar to Pakistan's border with western China, to establish a much shorter route between its western provinces and the Middle East.
While the prospect of an expanding role for the PLAN in the lOR may appear distant for now, Pakistani officials say China will eventually find it useful to deploy its naval vessels to the region. This will not only be for the world's fastest growing economy to establish a closer presence near the Middle East.
Additionally, the decision may also be China's response to the enlargement of a US-led western presence just off its own coastline, say western diplomats.
In the long run, such developments will help to cement Pakistan's long established defense ties with Beijing. But for Islamabad, the added benefit comes from an expansion of China's naval engagement with the Pakistan Navy, beyond a well-cemented historical relationship between China and Pakistan's army and the PAF. Senior naval officers say a consolidation of the relationship between the PLAN and Pakistan Navy will help Pakistan fill the gaps in its naval preparedness.
March 2013
Navy International
Pakistan's new naval strategy
Pakistan's long-established defense ties with Beijing are being further cemented by an increasing reliance on China to fulfill its naval hardware requirements.
Farhan Bokhari reports.
Almost two years after the Pakistan government formally approved a proposal from the Pakistan Navy to negotiate with China for the purchase of six new submarines, the country's economic difficulties are making it harder to close what could become Pakistan's largest-ever defense contract in terms of its value.
Notwithstanding China's growing relationship with Russia for the joint production of military hardware including submarines, Pakistan is not necessarily set to immediately become a beneficiary of improving Sino-Soviet ties.
In the past, Pakistan co-produced with China and successfully launched the JF-17 Thunder fighter aircraft for its Pakistan Air Force (PAF). One of the PAF's main frontline fighter planes, the JF-17 is equipped with the Russian manufactured RD-93 engine and stands out as an example of Sino-Pakistan co-operation with Russian input.
Analysts suggest Pakistan's acute budgetary constraints may have delayed the closure of the Chinese submarine deal. However, they still believe an accord will be reached in due course. "Pakistan and China have a long-trusted relationship," a senior Pakistani defense ministry official stated. "The submarine deal will happen at some stage:"
Pakistani officials believe that China will eventually offer substantial concessions on the pricing and repayment terms, to make the contract affordable for Pakistan. A deal is considered essential by naval planners to recapitalize a submarine force currently comprising three Agosta 90B (Khalid-class) submarines purchased in the 1990s and two ageing Agosta 70 (Hashmat-class) boats dating from the late 1970s.
The decision to buy Chinese submarines came after the Pakistan Navy all but abandoned plans for the purchase of the Type 214 boats produced by Germany's ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, mainly because of financial considerations. The purchase of new submarines is also considered by Pakistan's defense planners as a strategic Objective; in particular, there are plans to eventually equip them with some form of submarine-launched ballistic missile to address the one remaining gap in the country's nuclear delivery capability.
Pakistan is the world's newest entrant to the nuclear club, having conducted sixnuc1ear tests on 28 May 1998 - just three weeks after an earlier series of tests by neighboring India. "Ultimately, Pakistan is becoming increasingly vital for China from a strategic point of view and they [China} have made a commitment to us [Pakistan} for fulfilling our vital needs," the official said.
Historically, China has confined its naval presence to its coastal waters. But Pakistani planners believe China's emergence as a major power and the modernization of the Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) will see China's naval forces eventually operate in the Indian Ocean Region (lOR), off Pakistan's southern coast.
For now, the Pakistan Navy's principal rival remains the Indian Navy. The two navies have fought twice during all-out wars between the South Asian neighbors in 1965 and 1971, and still remain potential adversaries in the lOR.
The Pakistan Navy's main mission remains that of keeping the sea lanes open to and from Pakistan's southern coast line most notably to and from Karachi port and the newly emerging deep sea port at Gwadar in the southwestern Baluchistan province, near the Strait of Hormuz, which leads to the shipping lanes of the oil-rich Middle East.
While India and Pakistan have taken steps to normalize relations through measures such as liberalizing trade, analysts say their long-term divide will continue until such time that the dispute over the northern mountainous state of Kashmir is resolved. "The dispute in mountainous Kashmir will keep on fueling the defense build-up across the board for the army, air force, and the navy," said the official.
Consequently, Pakistan's top military planners are eager to underline their determination to keep up with their planning. "We are keeping our eyes and ears open to any misadventure and to emerging challenges in the region," was how Admiral Asif Sandila, chief of the naval staff, articulated his main task in carefully delivered public remarks last year.
For Adm. Sandila, maintaining the deterrence of his force is a key challenge. But two other elements have also come into play.
First, the Pakistan Navy became a partner of an international coalition deployed in the lOR under the banner CTF-150 (Coalition Task Force 150), which is dedicated to fighting international piracy.
According to senior naval planners, this was essential for securing a globally recognized profile for the service as a force dedicated to the stabilization of global security interests.
Second, the navy continues to consolidate its ties with China. In part, this has been done through the purchase from China of new hardware such as frigates, naval support helicopters, and fast attack missile boats.
In the latest such purchase, China in April 2012 handed over to Pakistan the first of two Azmat-class fast attack craft (missile). Based on the Houjian dass (Type 03712) missile craft in service with the PLAN, the Azmat class is designed to carry eightC-802A (YJ-83/CSS-N-8 ('Saccade') surface-to-surface missiles, two 25 mm guns (in a twin mounting forward), and two 12.7 mm machineguns. A similar second craft is being built by Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KSEW) under a transfer of technology agreement. This deal followed China's previous agreement in which it sold four F-22P Sword-class frigates to Pakistan.
These were a modification of the Type 053H3 Jiangwei II frigates. The deal also involved collaboration between KSEW and Chinese shipbuilders.
According to a western defense official in Islamabad, while the frigates will help the Pakistan Navy continue its missions in distant waters, the fast attack craft are intended to support the Pakistan Navy's mission to keep sea lanes open.
'Degree of deterrence'
"Pakistan's naval philosophy is built on maintaining a certain degree of deterrence" that blocks India's ability to "force a blockade on Pakistan", the official stated.
Additionally, western officials say, Pakistan is quietly working with China to arm the PAF with long-range missiles designed to target Indian naval vessels in the event of a blockade. "Even if these missiles are never used, at least Pakistan wants to have the assurance of being able to breakthrough any Indian deployment," said a second western defense official in Islamabad.
Meanwhile, in a move by Pakistan that was widely seen to lure China into the lOR, the country in August 2012 revealed that it was cancelling a contract with the Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) to manage the Gwadar Port. The PSA signed a 40-year contract in 2007 to manage the port, whose construction earlier had been financed by China. Since the contract was taken by the PSA, Pakistani officials complained that the authority failed to live up to its obligations to further develop the infrastructure surrounding the port. The cancellation of the contract will likely be followed by "a new arrangement where a Chinese operator will come to manage the contract", the official said.
Other Pakistani officials said that China has quietly offered to build a road and rail-link from Gwadar to Pakistan's border with western China, to establish a much shorter route between its western provinces and the Middle East.
While the prospect of an expanding role for the PLAN in the lOR may appear distant for now, Pakistani officials say China will eventually find it useful to deploy its naval vessels to the region. This will not only be for the world's fastest growing economy to establish a closer presence near the Middle East.
Additionally, the decision may also be China's response to the enlargement of a US-led western presence just off its own coastline, say western diplomats.
In the long run, such developments will help to cement Pakistan's long established defense ties with Beijing. But for Islamabad, the added benefit comes from an expansion of China's naval engagement with the Pakistan Navy, beyond a well-cemented historical relationship between China and Pakistan's army and the PAF. Senior naval officers say a consolidation of the relationship between the PLAN and Pakistan Navy will help Pakistan fill the gaps in its naval preparedness.
March 2013
Navy International
