<keyword id="1334" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="china" source="Orion">China</keyword> will deliver 25 J-10C fighter jets to <keyword id="3001" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="pakistan" source="Orion">Pakistan</keyword> within weeks in a major boost to the countrys military capabilities to defend its airspace, The News reported.<br /><br />UK's Financial Times reported that the first batch of combat aircraft is being tested in Chengdu, the base of its manufacturer Chengdu Aerospace Corporation.<br /><br />"They will be transferred to Pakistan once <keyword id="148496" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="pakistan-air-force" source="Orion">Pakistan Air Force</keyword> pilots and technicians complete an introduction to the aircraft," a journalist, working with a Chinese military publication, told FT.<br /><br />Senior officials in Islamabad said the jets would be delivered before the end of the month, the report added.<br /><br />The images of the J-10C fighter jet with the marking of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) recently surfaced on social media and were widely circulated by media outlets.<br /><br />First published on social media last week, the images show two J-10Cs, equipped with China's domestically developed WS-10B <keyword id="13223157" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="taihang-turbofan" source="Orion">Taihang turbofan</keyword> engines, undertaking test flights at an undisclosed location.<br /><br />"If confirmed, this could be the first time China has exported the J-10 series fighter and also the first time it has exported the WS-10 series engine," observers said.<br /><br />Commenting on the matter, Chinese analysts have lauded the latest defence cooperation between the two countries, saying that the move yields great significance to them, in terms of boosting combat capabilities of the Pakistan military, promoting China's aviation equipment, and responding to their security interests in the region, The News reported.<br /><br /><strong>SEE ALSO:<br /><a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/careers/news/indian-freelancers-are-earning-more-than-their-counterparts-in-other-countries/slidelist/89728039.cms">Indian freelancers are earning more than their counterparts in other countries</a><br /></strong><a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/international/news/russian-battleplans-call-for-overwhelming-intensity-of-fire-on-ukraine-warns-us/articleshow/89725274.cms"><strong>Russian battleplans call for 'overwhelming intensity of fire' on Ukraine, warns US</strong></a><br />

China reportedly will provide J-10C fighter jets to Pakistan to boost the military capabilities

<ul><li><strong>The F-16, which crashed near Shakarparian, Islamabad was rehearsing for a Pakistan Day airshow scheduled on March 23.<br /></strong></li><li><strong>The footage shot from nearby buildings, shows the moment when the plane came down, is trending on social media. <br /></strong></li><li><strong>A Pakistani wing commander Nauman Akram was martyred in the crash, PAF confirmed. </strong></li></ul>After an F-16 fighter jet of <keyword id="148496" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pakistan-Air-Force">Pakistan Air Force</keyword> (PAF) crashed near Shakarparian, Islamabad, a video of the crash went viral on the internet with hundreds of people sharing it. <br /><br />The F-16 built by the US, was a part of rehearsals for a Pakistan Day airshow and parade set to take place on March 23, according to a statement by the Pakistan Air Force. PAF also confirmed that a wing commander Nauman Akram lost his life during the crash.<br /><div type="twitter" handle="arsched" handlename="Arshad Sharif" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1158105471993229312/whm6e5bj_normal.jpg" favoritecount="1082" retweetcount="320" status="Two videos shot by citizens showing crash of #F16 aircraft in #Islamabad.  #PAF spokesperson said the aircraft cras… https://t.co/qLxUzH5BI0" createdat="1583911814000" id="1237641969725247488"></div>

<br />The footage shot from nearby buildings is trending on social media. It shows the moment when the plane came down with smoke and flames raising blew into the sky. <br /><br />PAF rescue teams rushed to the site of the crash and an inquiry has been ordered by Pakistan Air Headquarters to determine the cause of the accident, according to IANS. <br /><br />The speaker of the national assembly of Pakistan Asad Qaiser tweeted a picture of late Nauman Akram and wrote, “I am deeply saddened by the unfortunate crash ahead of March 23. May the departed soul of Shaheed Wing Commander Noman Akram rest in eternal peace and may Allah grant their loved ones sabr. Ameen.”<br /><br /><div type="twitter" handle="AsadQaiserPTI" handlename="Asad Qaiser" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1201915857825402880/I-1DYNQx_normal.jpg" favoritecount="358" retweetcount="48" status="إِنَّا لِلّهِ وَإِنَّـا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعونَ I am deeply saddened by the unfortunate crash ahead of 23rd March. May t… https://t.co/fcIpCAirYU" createdat="1583912570000" id="1237645142410047489"></div>

<br /><strong>Fourth plane crash in 3 months<br /></strong><br />The news came days after PAF reported its third plane crash in three months. As recently as February 12, a PAF trainer aircraft crashed during a routine training mission near Takht Bhai in Khyber. On February 7, a PAF Mirage aircraft was on an operational training mission, when it crashed near Lahore-Multan Motorway. However, pilots in both these cases had ejected safely.<br /><br />In January, a PAF aircraft crashed near Mianwali while on a training mission, in which both PAF pilots, named Squadron Leader Haris bin Khalid and Ibaadur Rehman lost their lives.<br /><br />The F-16 jets are among the most valuable contributions in the Pakistan military’s arsenal. It has a fleet of about 50 F-16 jets and each is <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/03/pakistan-air-force-16-jet-crashes-parade-rehearsal-200311071311372.html">worth at least $40 million</a>.<br />

A video of the exact moment of Pakistan’s F-16 plane crash goes viral

<img class="gwt-Image" src="/photo/54506066.cms" /><br /> The Rs 58,000 crore deal executed by India to purchase 36 Rafale fighter jets from <keyword id="6354785" type="COUNTRY" weightage="20" keywordseo="France">France</keyword> is undoubtedly one the most well negotiated pacts and one that will bring along huge gains for the domestic aviation industry besides creating job openings for the people of India.<br />
<br /> So what makes this deal, first since the purchase of Sukhois from <keyword id="6358826" type="COUNTRY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Russia">Russia</keyword> in the late 90s, a win-win for India.<br />
<br />
In an exclusive chat with <em>DefenceAviationPost.com</em>, Union Defence Minister, <keyword id="6363133" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Manohar-Parrikar">Manohar Parrikar</keyword> said, “In any foreign deal, there are 3-4 things that have to be taken care of. First is the cost, which we have negotiated at a much lesser price than the earlier price being quoted by the French team.”<br />
<br />
It is noteworthy to point here that the 7.878 billion Euros deal has been clinched at a price that is 750 million euros less than what was quoted by the French team in January 2016.<br />
<br />
“Second is the percentage of offsets which in this case is much higher than any other foreign military sales so far. This creates a huge potential for the aviation industry and is in line with the Prime Minister’s Make in India initiative,” the minister said.<br />
<br />
It may be mentioned here that deal comes with a 50% offset clause which means that Indian companies will get businesses worth over 3 billion euros or Rs 22,500 crores.<br />
<br /> <keyword id="50002" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="parrikar">Parrikar</keyword> said the most significant feature of this contract are the enhancements for India which even French aircrafts do not have.<br />
<br /> Firstly, these fighter jets come along with state-of-the-art missile weaponry profile that increases the strike capabilities of the <keyword id="6355075" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="IAF">IAF</keyword> to a great extent. It includes Meteor Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air missile with a range in excess 150 kms. Then it also comes along with <keyword id="55648" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Scalp">Scalp</keyword> (Pointed Offence) which is a long range air to surface cruise missile with a range of over 300 kms.<br />
<br /> Further, these fighter jets will be customised in line with the requirements of the IAF and will include <keyword id="3685910" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="helmet-mounted-displays">Helmet Mounted Displays</keyword>, radar warning receiver, infrared search and track among others.<br />
<br />
“So from all directions it is a win-win deal for India. Rafale is a potent aircraft and will add to the capability of the IAF,” the minister added.<br />
<br /> Experts say that Rafale coming fitted with <keyword id="1608338" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="meteors">Meteors</keyword> and Scalp will shake up <keyword id="148496" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pakistan-Air-Force">Pakistan Air Force</keyword> hugely and PLAAF (air warfare branch of China) to a fair extent.<br />
<br />
They added that the enhancements negotiated under the deal for 36 Rafale means that India’s adversaries will need four modern fighter jets to counter one Rafale. Simply put, the enemy will need four Su30 or four F16D (latest acquired by Pakistan) or four JF17 (which again Pakistan has) to counter one Rafale with its existing capabilities.<br />
<br />
“This 1:4 ratio will clearly give Indian an edge over its adversaries and the deal for 36 Rafale is equivalent to procuring 144 modern fighter jets,” an official said requesting anonymity.<br />
<br />
Timelines is another major aspect of this deal. The deliveries of fighter jets will start in 36 months and completed in 18 months thereon.<br />
<br /> Under the contract, the French manufacturer <keyword id="6407804" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dassault">Dassault</keyword> has to ensure that 75% of the fleet or 27 fighters are operationally available at any given time.<br />
<br />
<em><strong>In a nutshell: Significance of Rafale Deal for India</strong></em><br />
<br />
Rafale is an exceptional twin-engine fighter and is capable of carrying out all combat missions including air defence, interception, ground support,in-depth strikes, reconnaissance, anti-ship strikes and nuclear deterrence.<br />
<br />
It has everything to qualify as fifth generation aircraft minus the stealth.<br />
<br />
Its radar and BVR capabilities are the best in the world (so experts call it a 4.5 generation)<br />
<br />
Only the US has 5th Gen Fighters in F22 and F35.<br />
<br />
Since air power is most sensitive to technology, the offence defence ratios change significantly with each technological jump<br />
Experts say that Rafale coming fitted with Meteors will shake up Pakistan Air Force hugely and PLAAF to a fair extent.<br />
<br />
Rafale was chosen after lot of indepth studies and testing by the IAF that included Swedish Grippen, American F16 and F18, Russian MiG35, Eurofighter Typhoon and French Rafale.

EXCLUSIVE: Manohar Parrikar speaks about the Raffle deal and what it means for India

<img class="gwt-Image" src="/photo/51585950.cms" /><br />
 <br /> <keyword id="15141" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Indian-Air-Force">Indian Air Force</keyword> has always been a major part of the defence forces, thanks to the modern technology that it uses. However, the force is now under threat from China and Pakistan’s constantly and rapidly modernising air forces, revealed a top US think-tank. It also underlined that resolving this "crisis" should be Indian government’s top priority.<br />
<br />
"Despite being a world-class combat arm, the IAF's falling end strength and problematic force structure, combined with its troubled acquisition and development programs, threaten India's air superiority over its rapidly modernising rivals, China and Pakistan," said the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.<br />
<br />
The report, titled "The Manifold Travails of the Indian Air Force" has been written by Ashley Tellis, a top American expert on India and South Asia, whose counsel is sought by governments in both the countries. The report argues that India needs this air dominance for deterrence stability in southern Asia and also for preserving the strategic balance in the Indo-Pacific region.<br />
<br />
"Resolving India's airpower crisis, therefore, should be a priority for New Delhi," said the report.<br />
<br />
It added that as of early this year, IAF's fighter force is weaker than the numbers suggest, while drawing attention to many of its frontline aircraft are obsolete.<br />
<br />
Comparing China and Pakistan’s air forces to that of India, it said that they have about 750 advanced air defense/ multirole fighters as compared to IAF's 450-odd equivalents.<br />
<br />
"The IAF's desire for 42 45 squadrons by 2027 some 750 800 aircraft is compelling, if India is to preserve the airpower superiority it has enjoyed in southern Asia since 1971," the report said.<br />
<br />
While concluding, Tellis said that IAF's likelihood of reaching its 2027 goal with a high proportion of advanced fighters seems poor.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://media.indiatimes.in/media/content/2015/May/su-30-mki_1432196760_725x725.jpg"><em>Image source</em></a><br />


Indian Air Force under threat from China and Pakistan, says US think tank

By Sajjad Hussain Islamabad, Dec 28 () Pakistan has rolled out the first batch of its indigenous dual-seat fighter jets, manufactured in collaboration with its all-weather ally China. <br /><br />To mark the occasion, a grand ceremony was held at the Aircraft Manufacturing Factory in Kamra near Islamabad on Friday, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) said in a statement. <br /><br />Pakistan's Air Chief Marshal Mujahid Anwar Khan, Chinese Ambassador Yao Jing and Aviation Industries of China Executive Vice President Hao Zhaoping were present on the occasion. <br /><br />The first batch of eight dual-seat JF-17 aircraft was manufactured by the <keyword id="1188469" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pakistan-Aeronautical-Complex">Pakistan Aeronautical Complex</keyword> (PAC) in collaboration with the China National Aero-Technology Import &amp; Export Corporation (CATIC). <br /><br />Air Chief Khan congratulated the PAC and the CATIC on completing the fighter jets in a record time of five months. <br /><br />He said the serial production of the dual-seat variant was a landmark development for the JF-17 programme and a true manifestation of the everlasting Sino-Pak friendship. <br /><br />Khan said the JF-17 Thunder was the backbone of the PAF. <br /><br />Chinese Ambassador Yao said the JF-17 was a testimony of the friendship and mutual cooperation between China and Pakistan. <br /><br />The PAC and the CATIC also signed an agreement for co-production of Chinese commercial aircraft, the statement said. SH SCY

Pakistan rolls out first batch of dual-seat fighter jets manufactured in collaboration with China

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Relations between the US and <keyword id="11892747" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="india" source="Orion">India</keyword> and between <keyword id="11892748" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="china" source="Orion">China</keyword> and <keyword id="11893449" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="pakistan" source="Orion">Pakistan</keyword> are growing closer.</li><li>India and Pakistan are looking to boost their military capabilities, while the US and China are looking for support of their regional and global ambitions.</li></ul><p>In the final months of 2021, Pakistan <a href="https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2021/11/pakistan-navy-commissions-1st-type-054-a-p-frigate-pns-tughril/" target="_top">commissioned</a> the first of four Chinese-built Tughril-class frigates and <a href="https://www.defensenews.com/global/asia-pacific/2022/01/03/pakistan-confirms-chinese-firebird-fighter-acquisition/" target="_top">confirmed</a> its intentions to buy 25 of China's <a href="https://www.airforce-technology.com/projects/j-10/" target="_top">J-10C</a> fighter jets.</p><p>Those are only the latest high-profile defense projects between Beijing and Islamabad, and they are emblematic of the growing relations between two countries with a common goal: countering the threat they see in India.</p><p>At the same time, India has increasingly turned to the US to meet its defense needs. The US has become a large supplier of arms to India over the past decade, and the two countries have deepened <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-intelligence-sharing-with-india-helps-monitor-chinese-military-2020-12" target="_top">their defense cooperation</a> as well.</p><p>The moves add another geopolitical layer to what was already one of the world's most intense rivalries.</p><h2>Old rivals seek new friends</h2><div type="image" title="Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan in Chinese J-10C jet" height="683" width="1024" msid="90400022" hostid="261"></div><p>Before China became Pakistan's chief arms supplier in the 1990s, Islamabad relied on the US for higher-end defense equipment and assistance — a partnership borne out of cooperation to oust the Soviets from Afghanistan in the 1980s.</p><p>China and Pakistan's military relationship dates to the 1960s, but in recent years, the Pakistani military's hardware has increasingly come from China or through joint Pakistani-Chinese ventures.</p><p>Virtually all of <a href="https://www.defensenews.com/land/2021/11/19/pakistan-resumes-armor-modernization-as-terror-threat-recedes/" target="_top">Pakistan's main battle tanks</a> are exported Chinese models or variants of Chinese tanks developed in Pakistan, like the <a href="https://www.army-technology.com/projects/alzarrarmianbattleta/" target="_top">Al-Zarrar</a>. Pakistan has fielded upgraded variants of the <a href="https://www.armyrecognition.com/pakistan_pakistani_army_tanks_heavy_armoured_uk/al_khalid_al-khalid_main_battle_tank_technical_data_pictures.html" target="_top">Al-Khalid</a> tank, developed jointly with a Chinese firm and in production since 2001, and <a href="https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/pakistan-army-holds-induction-ceremony-for-vt4-mbt" target="_top">begun acquiring</a> Chinese-made <a href="https://www.armyrecognition.com/china_chinese_heavy_armoured_vehicle_tank_uk/vt4_mbt-3000_norinco_mbt_main_battle_tank_data_pictures_video.html" target="_top">VT-4</a> tanks.</p><p>The workhorse of Pakistan's Air Force is the <a href="https://www.airforce-technology.com/projects/fc1xiaolongjf17thund/" target="_top">JF-17</a>, a fighter developed jointly with China and meant to replace Pakistan's aging Chinese-made J-7s. The PAF also <a href="https://eurasiantimes.com/satellite-image-reveals-chinese-predator-drones-armed-with-hellfire-type-missiles-stationed-at-pakistani-airbase/" target="_top">operates</a> a number of Chinese-made drones capable of strike missions.</p><p>As the PAF's use of its US-made F-16s is <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/world-report/articles/2019-12-11/state-department-reprimanded-pakistan-in-august-for-misusing-f-16s-document-shows" target="_top">limited</a> by the terms of their sale, buying J-10Cs may be an attempt to substitute or even replace the American fighter with one Pakistan can actually use against India.</p><div type="image" title="Pakistan Zulfiqar-class frigate Shamsheer" height="1337" width="2000" msid="90400023" hostid="261"></div><p>At sea, three of the Pakistani navy's four <a href="https://www.naval-technology.com/projects/sword-f22p/" target="_top">Zulfiquar-class</a> frigates were built in China like the Tughril-class frigates, the fourth of which was <a href="https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2021/12/chinese-shipyard-launches-two-type-054-frigates-and-one-type-071e-lpd/" target="_top">launched</a> in December.</p><p>China is also helping Pakistan <a href="https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2021/12/pakistan-cuts-steel-for-5th-hangor-class-submarine-pns-tasnim/" target="_top">build</a> eight Hangor-class submarines — a variant of China's <a href="https://news.usni.org/2015/08/31/essay-inside-the-design-of-chinas-yuan-class-submarine" target="_top">Type 039A</a> diesel-electric sub — splitting production between Chinese and Pakistani shipyards. They are expected to be delivered between 2022 and 2028 and will <a href="https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2020/10/pakistans-new-chinese-aip-submarines-image-shows-karachi-site/" target="_top">double</a> the size of Pakistan's submarine fleet.</p><p>The defense relationship <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/China-and-Pakistan-ink-military-MOU-to-counter-US-India-pact" target="_top">goes beyond</a> weapons sales. China and Pakistan <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/1646630" target="_top">regularly</a> conduct <a href="https://cscr.pk/explore/themes/defense-security/importance-of-shaheen-exercises-for-pakistan-air-force-and-indian-concerns/" target="_top">joint</a> and multinational <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/east-asia-pacific_chinas-warships-hold-joint-naval-drill-pakistan/6182310.html" target="_top">military exercises</a>. Officials from both countries speak of their relationship in glowing terms, describing it as <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Opinion/Pakistan-China-and-terrorism" target="_top">"close as lips and teeth"</a> and <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/pakistan/10161516/China-Pakistan-friendship-sweeter-than-honey-says-Nawaz-Sharif.html" target="_top">"sweeter than honey."</a></p><p>As its two fiercest rivals have deepened their defense ties, India has deepened its own military partnerships, in particular with Russia, which has for decades supplied India with advanced hardware.</p><p>The US has historically been reluctant to sell arms to India because of New Delhi's ties with Moscow and fears that those weapons may be used in a war in <keyword id="11893424" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="south-asia" source="Orion">South Asia</keyword>. But in recent years India has increased its purchases of defense equipment from the US and other Western countries.</p><div type="image" title="India Australia US Navy P-8" height="1125" width="1500" msid="90400024" hostid="261"></div><p>Since the signing of the <a href="http://library.rumsfeld.com/doclib/sp/3211/2005-06-28%20New%20Framework%20for%20the%20US-India%20Defense%20Relationship.pdf" target="_top">New Framework for the US-India Defense Relationship</a> in 2005, India has purchased <a href="https://theprint.in/defence/c-130j-super-hercules-lands-on-national-highway-heres-a-look-at-past-landings-on-expressways/730942/" target="_top">dozens</a> of US-made <a href="https://thediplomat.com/2019/08/india-takes-delivery-of-11th-c-17-globemaster-from-united-states/" target="_top">cargo</a> aircraft and <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/india-gets-final-batch-of-apache-attack-helicopters-amid-ongoing-standoff-with-china/articleshow/76896252.cms" target="_top">attack</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZXNXX1aS08" target="_top">transport</a> helicopters — including <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-aircraft-boost-india-efforts-to-counter-china-at-sea-2021-7" target="_top">MH-60R Seahawk</a> and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/india-china-more-us-made-sub-hunting-planes-2018-1" target="_top">P-8I maritime patrol planes</a>, both of which are important for Indian efforts to keep an eye on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/after-himalayan-clash-india-prepares-navy-to-take-on-china-2021-6" target="_top">increasing Chinese activity</a> in the <keyword id="13267637" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="indian-ocean" source="Orion">Indian Ocean</keyword>.</p><p>The F/A-18, the F-15EX, and the F-21 (an F-16 variant made just for India by Lockheed Martin) are all <a href="https://eurasiantimes.com/indias-20b-multi-role-fighter-aircraft-mrfa-contract-junk-us-fighters/" target="_top">in the running</a> to fill an Indian order for 114 new fighter jets. The F/A-18 is also <a href="https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/india-closing-fa-18-super-hornet-its-carrier-fighter-200384" target="_top">a contender</a> to be used aboard India's first domestically built aircraft carrier, <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-first-indigenous-aircraft-carrier-ins-vikrant-sea-trails-7714755/" target="_top">INS Vikrant</a>.</p><p>The US has also sold India lethal weaponry such as <a href="https://www.dsca.mil/press-media/major-arms-sales/india-mk-54-lightweight-torpedoes-0" target="_top">torpedos</a>, anti-ship <a href="https://www.dsca.mil/press-media/major-arms-sales/india-agm-84l-harpoon-air-launched-block-ii-missiles" target="_top">missiles</a>, <a href="https://www.dsca.mil/press-media/major-arms-sales/india-mk-45-gun-system" target="_top">naval guns</a>, an anti-aircraft <a href="https://www.dsca.mil/press-media/major-arms-sales/india-integrated-air-defense-weapon-system-iadws-and-related-equipment" target="_top">system</a>, <a href="https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/army-to-get-firepower-boost-in-mountains-with-more-m777-guns-101636896249075.html" target="_top">M777 howitzers</a>, and 144,000 US-made <a href="https://theprint.in/defence/indian-army-to-order-second-batch-of-72000-sig-716-assault-rifles-from-us/459438/" target="_top">SIG716</a> rifles.</p><p>India's military participates in <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-indian-soldiers-yudh-abhyas-exercise-alaska-amid-china-tension-2021-12" target="_top">land</a> and <a href="https://www.stripes.com/theaters/asia_pacific/2021-10-14/quad-malabar-naval-drills-india-us-australia-japan-3237200.html" target="_top">naval</a> exercises with the US, and the two sides have <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-intelligence-sharing-with-india-helps-monitor-chinese-military-2020-12" target="_top">expanded their intelligence-sharing</a> amid tensions along India's disputed border with China.</p><h2>Geopolitical realities</h2><div type="image" title="India China border guards" height="1648" width="2464" msid="90400025" hostid="261"></div><p>The developments in the China-Pakistan and US-India relationships reflect the geopolitical realities in South Asia and across the Asia-Pacific region.</p><p>India and Pakistan have looked to the US and to China to boost their military capabilities, while the US and China are looking to India and Pakistan to support their regional and global ambitions.</p><p>Pakistan's <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/the-implications-of-deepening-economic-ties-between-pakistan-china-/6443711.html" target="_top">reliance on China</a>, in particular Chinese investment in the <a href="https://www.cfr.org/blog/china-pakistan-economic-corridor-hard-reality-greets-bris-signature-initiative" target="_top">China-Pakistan Economic Corridor</a>, will only increase in the aftermath of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. The withdrawal is also likely to reduce the US's commitment to Pakistan, as they are aligned on few other issues.</p><p>"The China-Pakistan relationship is deeper because China's goals are more aligned with what Pakistan wants, which is the ability to counter its main rival, India," Timothy Heath, a senior <keyword id="6356001" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="international" source="Orion">international</keyword> and defense researcher at the Rand Corporation think tank, told Insider.</p><div type="image" title="Pakistan Gwadar port China Kashgar trade" height="1331" width="2000" msid="90400027" hostid="261"></div><p>"China hopes to keep a strong, relatively well-equipped and well-armed Pakistan as a partner, because from Beijing's perspective, that helps keep a potential rival — namely India — distracted and unable to cause more problems for China," Heath added.</p><p>Some in Pakistan <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/23/opinion/pakistan-united-states-china.html" target="_top">are wary</a> of going all-in on China and may seek rapprochement with the US, particularly if China grows reluctant to invest further in Pakistan's struggling economy. Beijing has also stopped short of making a military commitment to Pakistan — largely because it fears getting dragged into a full-blown conflict between Pakistan and India.</p><p>"They have a good deal where they use Pakistan to box in India and they stay outside and allow those two to bleed each other and beat each other up a little bit," Heath said.</p><p>While Beijing wants to avoid "extreme escalations," Heath said, "tensions of a low simmering type are useful for China."</p><p>For India, the US has emerged as a prime partner as Delhi grows more concerned with Chinese ambitions and the potential for conflict along its borders with both China and Pakistan.</p><div type="image" title="India Pakistan MiG-21 missiles" height="1331" width="2000" msid="90400028" hostid="261"></div><p>The US-India relationship is "primarily driven by a strategic convergence," said Rahul Bhatia, a research analyst at Carnegie India.</p><p>"New Delhi and Washington essentially want multipolarity in the Indo-Pacific and a rules-based international order, which very loosely translates to containing China," Bhatia said, adding that "they need each other for that."</p><p>But despite a deepening defense relationship, India doesn't seek a full-fledged alliance with the US for a variety of political and economic reasons.</p><p>"When the US wants to sell a country arms, they are looking at building up a strategic partnership and interoperability. What India looks at when it's buying arms is building its own defense industrial base and the transfer of technology," Bhatia said.</p><p>Moreover, India does not want to break from its traditional stance of non-alignment.</p><p>"They want to maintain their strategic autonomy," Heath said. "That's a very deeply rooted tradition vigorously alive in India today."</p>

The US and China are picking sides in one of the world's most dangerous rivalries

In a recent meeting of the Defence Acquisition Council, India decided to carry out a significant capital procurement deal. Headed by the Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, the meeting held on Thursday, November 28, 2019 finalized an approval to procure defence equipment and <keyword id="6356319" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="weapons">weapons</keyword> estimated to cost the country around ₹22,800 crore. It is quite interesting to note some of the top of the list items that are on the agenda of the capital procurement deal finalized now. <br /><br />Some of the important highlights of the capital procurement include six additional P-8I long-range patrol aircraft for the Indian Navy that will be supplied by the US, additional Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF) that are made indigenously.<br /><br /><strong>Acceptance of Necessity</strong><br /><br />During a review of the successfully accomplished Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&amp;C) program championed indigenously, the DAC perceived the Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for the purchase of additional AWACS aircraft. In a statement made to the press, the Ministry remarked, “The mission system and sub-systems for these aircraft would be indigenously designed, developed and integrated into the main platform by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).”<br /><br />At present, the Indian Air Force has three units of Israeli Phalcon AWACS and three units of smaller indigenous Netra AEW&amp;C systems that are found mounted on Embraer aircraft.<br /><br />The aerial engagement with the Pakistan Air Force that took place a day after the Balakot air strike was an eye opener that stressed on the importance of augmenting the number of our force multipliers. These platforms are capable of on-board command and control and ‘early warning’, which can be of immense help to the Indian Air Force to achieve an effective dominance in the air space within a very short while of time. The new systems that will be procured will be mounted on the Airbus aircraft.<br /><br /><strong>Indigenous design<br /></strong><br />The Defence Acquisition Council also approved the idea of indigenously designing, developing and manufacturing ‘thermal imaging night sights’ for assault rifles. The Ministry said they will be manufactured by the Indian Private Industry partners and will be used by the troops arrayed on the front line.<br /><br />The DAC also approved purchasing twin-engine heavy helicopters for the use of Coast Guard. The council said these aircraft will prove to be of immense help to the Coast Guard on its different missions aimed at preventing maritime terrorism and rescue operations.<br /><br /><br /><br />

What Equipment And Weapons Are Being Purchased By India?

<ul><li><strong><keyword id="15141" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-Air-Force">Indian Air Force</keyword> fighter jets reportedly dropped 1,000 kilos of bombs across the <keyword id="44759" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Line-of-Control">Line of Control</keyword> with Pakistan.</strong></li><li><strong>The payload was allegedly dropped in the Muzaffarabad sector.</strong></li><li><strong>The strike comes in the wake of heightened tensions between the two countries </strong></li></ul>Indian Air Force fighter jets dropped  1,000 kilos of bombs across the Line of Control with Pakistan before returning, said several media reports.<br /><br />Several media reports claimed that the IAF strike was carried out by a group of Mirage 2000 fighters at around 3.30 a.m. Sources in the Indian forces told Indian news agencies the strikes were aimed at terror launch pads, and the Indian Prime Minister was taking stock of the security situation in the wake of the strike.<br /><br />In the wee hours of Wednesday, Pakistan Armed Forces spokesperson Asif Ghafoor tweeted that Indian aircraft had violated the LOC and “released a payload” in haste before returning. Following this, Pakistan air force immediately “scrambled.”<br /><br />In a statement Foreign Secretary of India VK Gokhale has said the move was a "pre-emptive, non-military" attack on <keyword id="36979" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Terror-camps">terror camps</keyword>.<br /><br />The payload was allegedly dropped near Balakot in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the Muzaffarabad sector. <br /><br />The strike comes in the wake of heightened tensions between the two countries following a suicide bomb attack on India’s security personnel in Pulwama, Kashmir on February 14 that killed over 40.<br /><br />Pakistan-based militant group, Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) claimed the terror strike.<br /><br /><em>With IANS</em><br /><br /><br /><br /><em><br /></em><br />

Indian fighter jets drop a ton of bombs across the Line Of Control: Reports

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The <keyword id="11893746" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="indian-air-force" source="Orion">Indian air force</keyword> is in the midst of a massive modernization and expansion effort.</li><li><keyword id="11892747" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="india" source="Orion">India</keyword> has focused on archrival <keyword id="11893449" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="pakistan" source="Orion">Pakistan</keyword> for decades, but it is now contending with a much larger foe: <keyword id="11892748" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="china" source="Orion">China</keyword>.</li></ul><p>Earlier this month, at the end of India's annual Independence Day parade in New Delhi, the Indian Air Force showed off its aircraft inventory in multiple flyovers of the Rajpath, a ceremonial boulevard in the capital.</p><p>The flyovers included transport aircraft, helicopter gunships, fighters, and fighter-bombers. It was the latest show of force for a military branch that, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/after-himalayan-clash-india-prepares-navy-to-take-on-china-2021-6" target="_top">like its naval counterpart</a>, is in the midst of a massive modernization and expansion effort.</p><p>Focused for decades on the threat from archrival Pakistan, India is now preparing its air force to fight another much larger foe: China.</p><p>With roughly 2,000 combat aircraft from its air force and navy, China has the largest aviation force in Asia and the third largest in the world. Worse for India, China's increasingly close relationship with Pakistan is <a href="https://thediplomat.com/2021/07/the-china-pakistan-partnership-continues-to-deepen/" target="_top">resulting in closer military cooperation</a>, including joint development of fighter jets.</p><p>Faced with the potential for an air war against two enemies, the IAF is increasing its size and capabilities.</p><h2>A significant inventory</h2><div type="image" title="Indian MiG-29 fighter jet" height="1116" width="2000" msid="85853169" hostid="261"></div><p>With well over 1,000 aircraft itself, the IAF is by no means small. Since India's independence, it has mostly fielded Russian aircraft made entirely in Russia or licensed for local production.</p><p>Even today, the biggest fleets in the IAF inventory are those of the <keyword id="12004876" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="mig-21" source="Orion">MiG-21</keyword>, MiG-29, and the <a href="https://www.airforce-technology.com/projects/su-30mki-multirole-fighter-aircraft-india/" target="_top">Su-30MKI</a> - a version of Russia's Su-30 made specifically for and by India. (India signed a contract for the Su-30MKI in the 1990s and has built more than 200 of them domestically since the mid-2000s.)</p><p>The service also has some European models, such as SEPECAT Jaguars and Mirage 2000s, which are the IAF's <a href="https://www.airforcemag.com/article/0912kargil/" target="_top">primary strike platforms</a>. But those aircraft, which were acquired in the 1980s, are showing signs of age, and the IAF plans to retire them by 2030.</p><p>India's MiG-21s, first introduced in the 1960s, are also expected to be retired by 2030 - even the modernized MiG-21 Bison models. The jet has <a href="https://theprint.in/defence/11-down-in-5-yrs-3-in-2021-but-many-in-iaf-still-swear-by-mig-21s-despite-its-safety-record/663813/" target="_top">a poor safety record</a>; as of 2013, more than 480 of India's MiG-21s had been involved in accidents that had caused over 200 deaths.</p><h2>Threats on two fronts</h2><div type="image" title="Indian Air Force Sukhoi Su-30MKI" height="800" width="1200" msid="85853174" hostid="261"></div><p>The Su-30MKI purchase was more than just a general upgrade. It came after the Pakistan Air Force in 1982 accepted the first of 28 US-made F-16s, which seriously increased the PAF's capabilities a decade after it <a href="http://www.indiandefencereview.com/spotlights/1971-air-war-battle-for-air-supremacy/" target="_top">last fought</a> the IAF.</p><p>The US <a href="https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/pakistan%E2%80%99s-long-controversial-love-affair-f-16-fighting-falcon-47682" target="_top">paused</a> F-16 deliveries in 1990 because of Pakistan's nuclear program, but they resumed in 2005, and the PAF now has some 75 F-16s. Their use is <a href="https://warontherocks.com/2020/08/how-americas-experience-with-pakistan-can-help-it-deal-with-turkey/" target="_top">conditional and closely monitored</a> by the US, but Pakistan would likely have no qualms about using them in an all-out war.</p><p>In 2019, a <a href="https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/26836/we-cut-through-the-conflicting-claims-and-misinformation-surrounding-indias-strikes-on-pakistan" target="_top">series of skirmishes</a> between India and Pakistan included airstrikes on each other's territory and resulted in one MiG-21 Bison being shot down by PAF fighters, possibly by an F-16. It was the first time since 1971 that air attacks had been conducted across the Line of Control.</p><p>During the Cold War, China sold Pakistan its J-6 and J-7 fighters, which were Chinese copies of Russia's MiG-19 and MiG-21. The PAF has also benefitted from Pakistan's closer ties with China in recent years.</p><div type="image" title="India Kashmir MiG-21 Bison crash" height="998" width="1400" msid="85853179" hostid="261"></div><p>Their air forces <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/Indo-Pacific/China-and-Pakistan-conduct-joint-air-drills-with-eye-on-India" target="_top">re</a><a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/Indo-Pacific/China-and-Pakistan-conduct-joint-air-drills-with-eye-on-India" target="_top">gularly</a> conduct joint <a href="https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202101/1211811.shtml" target="_top">exercises</a>, and they have even jointly developed a fourth-generation multirole combat aircraft, the <a href="https://www.airforce-technology.com/projects/fc1xiaolongjf17thund/" target="_top">JF-17</a>, of which Pakistan has over 100.</p><p>China and Pakistan are now <a href="https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/china-pakistan-upgrading-fighter-aircraft-used-against-indian-air-force-report/story-BS87X5ux3Xaj8QqS6jtssN.html" target="_top">planning</a> upgrades to Pakistan's JF-17 fleet, and China has <a href="https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/chinese-pla-tries-to-psyche-indian-army-by-supplying-armed-drones-to-pak/story-tySb4UnKimFUYIxJdP3xGL.html" target="_top">announced</a> the sale of 50 <a href="https://www.airforce-technology.com/projects/wing-loong-unmanned-aerial-vehicle-uav/" target="_top">Wing Loong II combat drones</a> to Pakistan. Pakistan may also <a href="https://thediplomat.com/2020/05/is-the-chinese-jh-7-an-answer-to-the-pakistan-air-forces-deep-strike-needs/" target="_top">acquire</a> Chinese strike aircraft.</p><p>China's own air force also poses a threat to the IAF. Particularly worrying for India are the <a href="http://www.military-today.com/aircraft/j10.htm" target="_top">J-10</a> and <a href="http://www.military-today.com/aircraft/j11.htm" target="_top">J-11</a> fighters and the <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2020/08/17/chinese-stealth-fighters-head-west-to-confront-india/?sh=5f36556a1b85" target="_top">J-20</a> stealth fighter.</p><p>The aerial threat from China was abundantly clear after last year's deadly standoff along its disputed border with India.</p><p>India has a longer history of air operations in the area, but China is <a href="https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/41065/tracking-chinas-sudden-airpower-expansion-along-its-western-border" target="_top">rapidly building and expanding</a> air bases and defenses along its western borders.</p><h2>A major modernization</h2><div type="image" title="Indian Air Force Rafale fighter jet" height="1333" width="2000" msid="85853182" hostid="261"></div><p>Appreciating the threats, the IAF has committed to modernization.</p><p>In 2016, India signed a contract with French firm Dassault Aviation four 36 Rafale multirole fighters. Twenty-six of them have been <a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/india-has-received-26-rafale-aircraft-till-date-govt/article35585665.ece" target="_top">delivered</a> so far, and some have <a href="https://www.business-standard.com/article/current-affairs/indian-air-force-deploys-first-rafales-in-east-to-counter-china-121072900013_1.html" target="_top">already been deployed</a> to counter possible Chinese aggression.</p><p>The IAF has also purchased 15 CH-47 Chinook helicopters and 22 AH-64 Apache gunships, both of which have also been <a href="https://theprint.in/defence/iaf-deploys-apache-attack-helicopters-and-chinooks-in-ladakh-increases-combat-air-patrols/445072/" target="_top">deployed</a> to the border region.</p><p>India has developed its own lightweight <keyword id="12004878" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="fighter-jet" source="Orion">fighter jet</keyword>, the <a href="https://www.airforce-technology.com/projects/tejas/" target="_top">HAL Tejas</a>, and has about 20 in service. The original order for 40 fighters was supplemented by <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/rs-48000-crore-landmark-deal-india-clears-purchase-of-83-tejas-jets-for-iaf/articleshow/80251469.cms" target="_top">an additional order</a> of 83 improved Tejas Mark 1A variants, with a second production line <a href="https://theprint.in/defence/govt-clears-rs-48000-cr-deal-for-83-tejas-mk-1a-all-you-want-to-know-about-the-aircraft/584743/" target="_top">built</a> to speed up production.</p><p>To meet its needs in the near-term, India is <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/after-tejas-india-moves-ahead-to-procure-more-mig-29s-sukhois/articleshow/80320199.cms" target="_top">buying</a> another 21 MiG-29s and 12 Su-30MKIs. It is also <a href="https://tass.com/defense/1316503" target="_top">upgrading</a> its MiG-29 fleet and modifying its Su-30MKIs to be able to fire Brahmos cruise missiles.</p><div type="image" title="Indian Air Force Tejas fighter jet" height="1326" width="2000" msid="85853185" hostid="261"></div><p>The IAF is also seeking 114 medium multirole combat aircraft.</p><p>The US-made F/A-18E/F and F-15, the French-built Rafale, the European-made Eurofighter Typhoon, and Russia's MiG-35 and Su-35 - all twin-engine jets - are in the running, as are the single-engine Swedish-built JAS 39 Gripen and US-built F-21, a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/lockheed-martin-unveils-f21-fighter-jet-to-compete-for-india-contract-2019-2" target="_top">version of the F-16</a> designed specifically for India.</p><p>India also has a number of high-profile domestic projects in development. It plans to fly a prototype from its own <a href="https://eurasiantimes.com/indias-5th-gen-aircraft-iaf-to-model-its-amca-on-us-f-35s-instead-of-j-20-or-su-57-jets-experts/" target="_top">fifth-generation stealth fighter program</a> by 2025 and recently <a href="https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/nation/hal-announces-unmanned-fighter-jet-207899" target="_top">unveiled</a> an unmanned fighter jet program.</p><p>India has relied on foreign suppliers for much of its military hardware - especially <a href="https://www.theweek.in/news/india/2021/07/21/russia-sees-india-as-prospective-buyer-for-checkmate-jet-but-will-iaf-want-it.html" target="_top">Russia</a>, with which it has a longstanding but <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/india-s400-purchase-risks-us-sanctions-amid-competition-with-china-2021-5" target="_top">increasingly fraught</a> relationship - but many of the new acquisition efforts will require some degree of local production as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "Make in India" program aimed at boosting domestic manufacturing.</p><p>Amid ongoing tensions with China and <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/china-pakistan-india-jockey-position-afghanistans-new-great-game-2021-08-23/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">renewed uncertainty</a> about the future in Afghanistan, India's efforts to expand and modernize its air force show how serious it is about countering the threat from its two most contentious neighbors.</p>

India is updating its air force for a modern war, and China isn't its only concern

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5c7654cd2628983e9144a813-1800/ap19058281561730.jpg" border="0" alt="India pakistan crashed jet" data-mce-source="AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan" data-mce-caption="An Indian army solider walks past the wreckage of an Indian aircraft after it crashed in Budgam area, outskirts of Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Wednesday, Feb.27, 2019." /></div></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li>Pakistan's civil aviation authority has closed the country's airspace as tensions with India escalate.</li><li>Pakistan says that it shot down two Indian jets and has two Indian pilots in custody because the aircraft crossed into Pakistan's side of the disputed Kashmir region.</li><li>Pakistan also launched air strikes into India-controlled Kashmir on Wednesday after India claimed to strike a militant training camp in Pakistan on Tuesday.</li></ul><p><span>Pakistan's Civil Aviation Authority said on Wednesday that it had shut its entire airspace to all commercial flights after it claimed to shoot down two Indian jets amid mounting tensions between the two nuclear rivals.</span></p><p><span>Pakistan's military claimed earlier on Wednesday that it had shot down two Indian aircraft because they crossed onto Pakistan's side of the disputed Kashmir region, The Associated Press (AP) and Reuters reported.</span></p><p><span>Pakistan added that it has&#xa0;</span><span>two Indian pilots in custody.</span></p><p><span>India has not yet issued a response, though it said on Tuesday that it had launched an airstrike on what it said was a militant training base in Pakistan, Reuters reported.</span></p><p><span>Pakistan's air force launched airstrikes into Indian-controlled part of Kashmir earlier on Wednesday, though no civilian casualities were reported, according to the AP.</span></p><p><span>Pakistan International Airlines warned passengers in a Wednesday tweet that Pakistan's air space closure might affect its flights.</span></p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Attention! As a precautionary measure, PIA flights may be affected due to closure of Pakistan Commercial Air Space. For details please call our universal helpline +92 021 111 786 786. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PIA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PIA</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Pakistan?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Pakistan</a> <a href="https://t.co/WKIEi5E0Fj">pic.twitter.com/WKIEi5E0Fj</a></p>- PIA  (@Official_PIA) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1100670038892298241?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 27, 2019</a></blockquote><script async="" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

Pakistan closed the entire country's airspace after claiming to shoot down two jets in a dogfight with India

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5c7654cd2628983e9144a813-1800/ap19058281561730.jpg" border="0" alt="India pakistan crashed jet" data-mce-source="AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan" data-mce-caption="An Indian army solider walks past the wreckage of an Indian aircraft after it crashed in Budgam area, outskirts of Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Wednesday, Feb.27, 2019."><p class="source"><span>AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan</span></p><p class="caption">An Indian army solider walks past the wreckage of an Indian aircraft after it crashed in Budgam area, outskirts of Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Wednesday, Feb.27, 2019.</p></img></div><p></p></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li><strong>Thousands of flights were canceled or rerouted after Pakistan closed its airspace following escalating tensions with India.</strong></li><li><strong>Airlines around the world delayed or scrapped routes passing over the country, which occupies a pivotal position between Asia and the Middle East.</strong></li><li><strong>Tensions have soared between the two nuclear powers over the past two weeks. Both countries shot down each others' jets on Wednesday, and Pakistan captured an Indian pilot.</strong></li></ul><p>Thousands of flights around the world were canceled or rerouted when Pakistan closed its airspace amid flaring tensions between it and nuclear rival India.</p><p>Authorities in Pakistan closed the entire country's air space after a confrontation between in and India over the contested Kashmir region, in which Pakistan says it shot down two Indian military planes.</p><p>The closure had a massive effect on the aviation industry, given Pakistan's pivotal position between Asia and the Middle East.</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5c77c5e726289850ce056b7f-1205/pakistan.jpg" border="0" alt="pakistan" data-mce-source="Google Maps/Business Insider"><p class="source"><span>Google Maps/Business Insider</span></p></img></div><p></p></div></div><p>But thousands of flights regional flights, as well as flight to Europe and Canada, were cancelled or rerouted to avoid Pakistani airspace.</p><p>Here are some of the airlines and routes affected by the closure across Wednesday and Thursday:</p><ul><li>Thai Airways <a href="https://twitter.com/ThaiAirways/status/1100788085615259648">said on Wednesday that it had canceled</a> all flights to Europe, as well as all flights to and from Pakistan. On Thursday, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ThaiAirways/photos/a.10150289767967293/10158541234817293/?type=3&amp;theater">the airline said</a> that it had resumed its flights to Europe, and that the flights would go through China instead.</li><li>Emirates <a href="https://www.emirates.com/ae/english/help/travel-updates.aspx/#3439">cancelled 10 flights</a> between Dubai and a number of Pakistan's airports on Thursday.</li><li><a href="https://www.aircanada.com/ca/en/aco/home/fly/flight-information/daily-travel-outlook.html">Air Canada warned</a> of delays of flights to Bombay and New Delhi on Wednesday and Thursday because of airspace closures "<span>due to political activity."</span></li><li><span>Qatar Airways <a href="https://qatarairways.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360018834894-Flights-to-and-from-Pakistan-may-be-delayed-Check-Qatar-Airways-Flight-Status-for-details">said</a> that flights to Peshawar, Faisalabad, Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Multan and Sialkot were delayed or suspended until further notice.&#xa0;</span></li><li><span>Singapore Airlines <a href="https://www.singaporeair.com/en_UK/sg/media-centre/news-alert/?id=jsj2zs2m">said</a> on Wednesday that a number of flights to Europe would be rerouted so they could stop to refuel en route to their destination.&#xa0;</span></li><li><span>British Airways was forced to reroute an unspecified number of flights, Reuters reported.</span></li></ul><p><span>As of Thursday, Pakistan's Civil Aviation Authority's <a href="https://www.caapakistan.com.pk/APS/Flight_Inquiry.aspx">website</a> said that most flights scheduled to arrive in all of Pakistan's airports are cancelled.</span></p><p>Flight tracking website Flightradar 24 shared an image of what it said was "<span>the most extreme example yet of the circuitous routing required due to the closure of Pakistani airspace" on Thursday morning. The Uzbekistan Airways flight was from Uzbekistan to India.</span></p><p>Flightradar 24 also shared a map comparing<span> airspace above Pakistan when the closure was made, versus a month before:</span></p><p>Pakistan's Civil Aviation Authority told passengers to contact their airlines for updates on their flights to and from Pakistan.</p><h2>Tension has increased between two rival nuclear powers</h2><p><span>Pakistan's military earlier Wednesday said it had shot down two Indian aircraft that crossed into Pakistan's side of the disputed Kashmir region, while India said that it had shot down one Pakistan Air Force plane.</span></p><p><span>Pakistan has one Indian pilot in custody, identified as </span>Wing Commander Abhi Nandan.</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5c77bfe12628982fb8194f22-1800/2019-02-28t091207z1lynxnpef1r0nortroptp4india-kashmir-pilot%201.jpg" border="0" alt="Indian pilot Wing Commander Abhi Nandan captured by Pakistan" data-mce-source="Inter Service Public Relation (ISPR) Handout via REUTERS" data-mce-caption="Indian pilot Wing Commander Abhi Nandan captured by Pakistan."><p class="source"><span>Inter Service Public Relation (ISPR) Handout via REUTERS</span></p><p class="caption">Indian pilot Wing Commander Abhi Nandan captured by Pakistan.</p></img></div><p></p></div></div><p><span>General Vijay Kumar Singh, the Indian Minister of State for External Affairs, described the pilot as "embodiment of a mentally tough, selfless &amp; courageous soldier" and called for his safe return.</span></p><p>"During these testing times the country stands, as one, behind him &amp; his family. Our efforts are on &amp; under the #GenevaConvention we hope that the brave pilot would return home soon," <a href="https://twitter.com/Gen_VKSingh/status/1100966838320619521">he said</a>.</p><p>Pakistan released a video of the detained pilot, which <span>India called a "vulgar display" and an "unprovoked act of aggression."</span></p><p>Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said at a press conference on Wednesday that the two countries "should sit down and talk." He urged "better sense to prevail."</p><p>Khan said that given the two nations' nuclear arsenals, "My question is that given the weapons we have can we afford miscalculation."</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5c77bf8326289862dc1b0ec4-1800/screenshot%202019-02-27%20at%20140921.png" border="0" alt="Imran Khan" data-mce-source="Sky News" data-mce-caption="Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan addressed the nation on Wednesday and said India and Pakistan should sit down and talk."><p class="source"><span>Sky News</span></p><p class="caption">Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan addressed the nation on Wednesday and said India and Pakistan should sit down and talk.</p></img></div><p></p></div></div><p><span>Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday that "the entire country is one and is standing with our soldiers."</span></p><p><span>He did not specifically mention Pakistan, but said "When our enemy tries to destabilize the country, when terrorists attack - one of their goals is that our progress should stop, our country should stop moving ahead,"<a href="https://edition.cnn.com/india/live-news/india-pakistan-kashmir-dle-intl/index.html"> CNN reported</a>.</span></p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Perhaps the most extreme example yet of the circuitous routing required due to the closure of Pakistani airspace. <a href="https://t.co/Sxm2x0qfkG">https://t.co/Sxm2x0qfkG</a> <a href="https://t.co/BTFm7kI1GD">pic.twitter.com/BTFm7kI1GD</a></p>- Flightradar24  (@flightradar24) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1100953683267932161?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 28, 2019</a></blockquote><script async="" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Flights to/from Delhi (DEL  VIDP) today at 1545 UTC vs. same time one month prior. <br><br>📡 <a href="https://t.co/RCdz3gR6Ot">https://t.co/RCdz3gR6Ot</a> <a href="https://t.co/pVkyeGvOOD">pic.twitter.com/pVkyeGvOOD</a></br></br></p>- Flightradar24  (@flightradar24) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1100787221727232002?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 27, 2019</a></blockquote><script async="" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tesla-roadster-what-fans-should-know-electric-vehicles-cars-2019-2">Everything you need to know about Tesla's new Roadster</a></h3>        <div>            <iframe class="bijwplayerclass" data-player="jwplayer" src="https://content.jwplatform.com/players/XKRiWpfs-CEZHWCBG.html" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" scrolling="auto" style="margin:0px;" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><script>function receiveMessage(event){ console.log(event.data.fullscreen); Android.fullscreen(event.data.fullscreen); }window.addEventListener("message", receiveMessage, false);</script>        </div>    </div>

Thousands of flights were canceled or rerouted when Pakistan shut down its airspace after shooting down Indian military plane

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5c75b4f72628980233451b75-2400/india pakistan kashmir.jpg" border="0" alt="india pakistan kashmir.JPG" data-mce-source="REUTERS/Adnan Abidi" data-mce-caption="People hold national flags and placards as they celebrate after Indian authorities said their jets conducted airstrikes on militant camps in Pakistani territory, in New Delhi, India, February 26, 2019." /><p class="source"><span>REUTERS/Adnan Abidi</span></p><p class="caption">People hold national flags and placards as they celebrate after Indian authorities said their jets conducted airstrikes on militant camps in Pakistani territory, in New Delhi, India, February 26, 2019.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul class="summary-list"><li>India launched airstrikes on Pakistan on Tuesday in response to a terror attack that killed 40 Indian troops, and people across India are celebrated what they saw as vengeance.</li><li>On the Pakistani side, the airstrikes represent a deeply embarrassing military defeat, even though they claim the airstrikes missed and killed no one.</li><li>India didn't just bomb the disputed border zone between the two countries, it entered Pakistan's actual air space with virtual impunity.</li><li>Pakistan's <keyword id="6354810" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="defense">defense</keyword> minister said Pakistan would have responded with jets, but it was dark, prompting intense mockery in India.</li><li>But the clash is no joke. Pakistan's military has incredible sway in the country and may now feel forced to retaliate against India, its nuclear rival. </li><li><strong>With China closely backing Pakistan and the US supporting India, Pakistan and India's rivalry has long been seen as a potential flash point for a global nuclear conflict.</strong></li></ul><p>Pakistan on Tuesday hinted at a possible nuclear retaliation to Indian airstrikes in its territory, which came as a great embarrassment to Islamabad, where the politically powerful military apparently failed to do anything about an outright attack from its chief rival.</p><p>India bombed Balakot, Pakistan, in response to a terror attack that killed 40 Indian troops in the disputed region of Kashmir, which India and Pakistan both claim but jointly administer.</p><p>"What happened is embarrassing," Asfandyar Mir, a postdoctoral fellow at the Center for <keyword id="6356001" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="international">International</keyword> Security and Cooperation at Stanford University, told Business Insider.</p><p>"The fact that India was able to intrude into Pakistani airspace, not into the disputed region, but into the country, very close to the place where the US raid to kill Osama Bin Laden happened... this is embarrassing for domestic audience," said Mir. </p><p>Pakistan vowed retaliation at a time and place of its choosing, which it said would come as a surprise to India. Pakistan even called a meeting of their National Command Authority, or the group that makes the calls on when to use nuclear weapons, and hinted it was mulling a nuclear strike.</p><p>But in other ways, Pakistan's response furthered the shame of the attack. </p><h2>Pakistan being trolled online</h2><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5c75bb2626289802f669defb-1400/2018-11-01t042934z2050805760rc1e872d1b00rtrmadp3china-airshow.jpg" border="0" alt="Pakistan air force fighter jet" data-mce-source="REUTERS/Stringer" data-mce-caption="Pakistani air force personnel check a JF-17 Thunder fighter jet ahead of the China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition, or Zhuhai Airshow, in Zhuhai in China's Guangdong province, October 31, 2018." /><p class="source"><span>REUTERS/Stringer</span></p><p class="caption">Pakistani air force personnel check a JF-17 Thunder fighter jet ahead of the China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition, or Zhuhai Airshow, in Zhuhai in China's Guangdong province, October 31, 2018.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p><span>"Our air force was ready but since it was night they could not assess the damage so they waited and now there is clear direction that if there is any other similar attack, we will respond adequately," Pakistan's defense minister said at a press conference. </span><a href="http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/68174996.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&amp;utm_medium=text&amp;utm_campaign=cppst"></a></p><p><span>Indians on social media latched on to the first part of the quote, which appeared to make an excuse for Pakistan's inaction in face of the attack and viciously mocked Pakistan.</span></p><p><span>Maj. Gen. Asif Ghafoor, the spokesperson for Pakistan's military, said that Pakistan's air force did indeed respond and chased away the Indian jets, but the Indian side totally refutes this. </span></p><p><span>Ghafoor t<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/pakistan-hints-nuking-india-after-airstrikes-escalate-white-hot-feud-2019-2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">weeted pictures of cratered patches of dirt and twisted metal</a> which he said was evidence of India's failed attack, but this didn't blunt the gleeful and taunting response from Indians online. </span></p><p><em><strong>Read more</strong>: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/pakistan-hints-nuking-india-after-airstrikes-escalate-white-hot-feud-2019-2">Pakistan hints at nuking India after cross-border airstrikes roil the white hot feud</a></em></p><p><span>Both sides agree that India struck Balakot, but the results of the strike remain unclear and hotly disputed, with India claiming that as many as 300 militants were killed, and Pakistan saying only trees and some houses were hurt. </span></p><p><span>Around the country, Indians celebrated what they saw as vengeance for the terror attack earlier in February. </span></p><p><span>But there's reason to believe that the online mockery could lead to real life bloodshed.</span></p><h2><span>Online mobs and blood lust</span></h2><p><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/55ed807bbd86ef17008b8863-2400/rtx12tz1.jpg" border="0" alt="pakistan" data-mce-source="REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro " data-mce-caption="A Pakistani flag flies on a mast as paramilitary Frontier Corps soldiers talk while guarding at Karachi's District Malir prison, August 23, 2013." /><p class="source"><span>REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro </span></p><p class="caption">A Pakistani flag flies on a mast as paramilitary Frontier Corps soldiers talk while guarding at Karachi's District Malir prison, August 23, 2013.</p></div><p></p></div></div></span></p><p><span>Mir said that there will be intense pressure on Pakistan, both Prime Minister Imran Khan and the military, to strongly respond. In the immediate aftermath of the Indian airstrikes, reports of gunfire across the line of control in Kashmir and fighter jets flying above Islamabad, Pakistan's capital, flooded Twitter.</span></p><p><span>On Facebook and other social media platforms, both Pakistan and India have fielded intensely bloodthirsty online commenters that constantly mock and antagonize the other side. </span></p><p>"The online militias, they are certainly representative of the sentiment on the ground. In many ways, they are also stoking nationalism," said Mir. </p><p>In India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist party faces a looming reelection, and in Pakistan, the military faces pressure from young nationalists to look powerful after being caught off guard. </p><p>Mir said that Balakot is close to Abbottabad, the location of the US Navy SEALs raid that killed Osama Bin Laden, which also shamed Pakistan.</p><p>'This is the second time Pakistani air defenses were caught sleeping, at least as known to the Pakistani public," said Mir.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5c757068262898229d735836-1579/kashmirregion2004.jpg" border="0" alt="Kashmir region 2004" data-mce-source="CIA via Wikimedia Commons" data-mce-caption="Political map of the Kashmir region districts, showing the Pir Panjal range and the Kashmir valley or Vale of Kashmir." data-link="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kashmir#/media/File:Kashmir_region_2004.jpg" /><p class="source"><span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kashmir#/media/File:Kashmir_region_2004.jpg">CIA via Wikimedia Commons</a></span></p><p class="caption">Political map of the Kashmir region districts, showing the Pir Panjal range and the Kashmir valley or Vale of Kashmir.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>"India is not the US. Pakistan might be discouraged by what the US might do next should it bring down a US aircraft," but "the Pakistani military is likely to see that as more of an insult than an American incursion."</p><p>And it matters what Pakistan's military thinks.</p><p>Pakistan's military wields significant political power in ways likely unimaginable to those in the West, where militaries labor to do the bidding of civilian leadership.</p><p><strong>Read more:</strong> <em><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/subterranean-combat-gear-for-us-military-to-fight-underground-2019-2" data-analytics-position="14">The US military is getting ready to fight underground - here are 10 things it'll need for subterranean combat</a></em></p><p>"Pakistan has seen four bouts of military rule after the British gave India and Pakistan independence," said Mir. </p><p>"In the Pakistani context, the military is the most important political entity. Even at times when there is a civilian government in charge, the military tends to have enormous power," he continued, adding that Pakistan's prime minister cannot act independently and would need the consent of the military before making any bold moves. </p><h2>Nuclear conflict unleashed</h2><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/56fe812152bcd029008ba233-948/screen shot 2016-04-01 at 100907 am.png" border="0" alt="pakistan nuclear weapon" data-mce-source="Public Domain" /><p class="source"><span>Public Domain</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Not only does Pakistan's military likely feel the need to strike back to save face, India completely unleashed its military to freely conduct war in retaliation for the terror attack. </p><p>Normally the US would step in and intervene to urge calm and an end to fighting, but this time around the US has done no such thing.</p><p>Mir said that with the US's State Department's Southeast Asia division busy negotiating a peace deal with the Taliban and guiding a summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, there's little focus on this conflict between two nuclear-armed states. </p><p>The one notable comment the US did make defended India's right to self-defense while placing the blame on Pakistan for harboring terror groups. </p><p>With China closely backing Pakistan and the US supporting India, Pakistan and India's rivalry has long been seen as a potential flash point for a global nuclear conflict.</p>      <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-el-chapo-joaquin-guzman-really-like-cartel-wives-2017-10">What El Chapo is really like, according to the wife of one his closest henchman</a></h3>        <div>            <iframe class="bijwplayerclass" data-player="jwplayer" src="https://content.jwplatform.com/players/m2kCLxNU-CEZHWCBG.html" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" scrolling="auto" style="margin:0px;" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><script>function receiveMessage(event){ console.log(event.data.fullscreen); Android.fullscreen(event.data.fullscreen); }window.addEventListener("message", receiveMessage, false);</script>        </div>    </div>

Pakistan clings to its nukes after embarrassing air battle beating and intense mockery from India

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5a9dd4a3ed1ed8ea188b456a-799/tillerson-says-will-give-trump-several-options-on-iran-nuclear-deal.jpg" alt="U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson (R) meets with Pakistan's Foreign Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif at the State Department in Washington, U.S., October 4, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas" data-mce-source="Thomson Reuters" data-mce-caption="Secretary of State Rex Tillerson meets with Pakistan's Foreign Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif in Washington" /><p class="source"><span>Thomson Reuters</span></p><p class="caption">Secretary of State Rex Tillerson with Pakistani Foreign Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif at the State Department in Washington, October 4, 2017.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - As US influence in Islamabad wanes, Pakistan's former adversary Russia is building military, diplomatic and economic ties that could upend historic alliances in the region and open up a fast-growing gas market for Moscow's energy companies.</p><p>Russia's embrace of Pakistan comes at a time when relations between the United States and its historical ally are unraveling over the war in Afghanistan, a remarkable turnaround from the 1980s, when Pakistan helped funnel weapons and US spies across the border to aid Afghan fighters battling Soviet troops.</p><p>Though the Moscow-Islamabad rapprochement is in its infancy, and it is neighbor China that is filling the growing void left by the United States in Pakistan, a slew of energy deals and growing military cooperation promise to spark life into the Russia-Pakistan relationship that was dead for many decades.</p><p>"It is an opening," Khurram Dastgir Khan, Pakistan's <keyword id="6354810" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Defense">defense</keyword> minister, told Reuters. "Both countries have to work through the past to open the door to the future."</p><p>The cozier diplomatic ties have so far focused on Afghanistan, where Russia has cultivated ties to the Afghan Taliban militants who are fighting US troops and have historic links to Islamabad. Moscow says it is encouraging peace negotiations.</p><p>Both Russia and Pakistan are also alarmed by the presence of Islamic State (IS) inside Afghanistan, with Moscow concerned the group's fighters could spread towards central Asia and closer to home. In Pakistan, IS has already carried out major attacks.</p><p>"We have common ground on most issues at diplomatic levels," Pakistan's Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi told Reuters. "It's a relationship that will grow substantially in the future."</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5a71978424d50524008b4797-1500/gwadar port pakistan.jpg" alt="gwadar port pakistan" data-mce-source="Drazen Jorgic/Reuters" data-mce-caption="A general view of Gwadar port in Gwadar, Pakistan October 4, 2017. Picture taken October 4, 2017. REUTERS/Drazen Jorgic" /><p class="source"><span>Drazen Jorgic/Reuters</span></p><p class="caption">A general view of Gwadar port in Gwadar, Pakistan, October 4, 2017.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>During a trip to Moscow last month by Pakistan's foreign minister, Khawaja Asif, the two countries announced plans to establish a commission on military cooperation to combat the threat of IS in the region.</p><p>They also agreed to continue annual military training exercises that began in 2016 and followed the sale of four Russian attack helicopters to Pakistan, as well as the purchase of Russian engines for the Pakistan Air Force's JF-17 fighter jets that Pakistan's military assembles on its own soil.</p><p>The detente has been watched with suspicion by Pakistan's neighbor and arch-foe India, which broadly stood in the Soviet camp during the Cold War era. In the last two decades, the close Russia-India relationship has been underpinned by huge arms sales by Moscow to a country it calls a "strategic partner."</p><p>"If the Russians start backing the Pakistanis in a big way at the political level, then it creates a problem for us," said Sushant Sareen, a leading expert on India's relations to Pakistan and Afghanistan with New Delhi-based Observer Research Foundation.</p><p>India's foreign ministry did not respond to a request for comment on Russia's ties with Pakistan, but has previously said that its own relations with Moscow have stood the test of time, and that the two nations are building up defense and energy relations, including collaboration on nuclear reactors in India.</p><h2>Pivoting east</h2><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5a9ad5c15124c9947325cafd-800/moscow-sees-extended-us-sanctions-over-ukraine-as-unlawful.jpg" alt="Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a rally to support his bid in the upcoming presidential election at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Russia March 3, 2018. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov" data-mce-source="Thomson Reuters" data-mce-caption="Russian President Putin delivers a speech during a rally to support his bid in the upcoming presidential election at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow" /><p class="source"><span>Thomson Reuters</span></p><p class="caption">Russian President Vladimir Putin at a rally to support his bid in the upcoming presidential election at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, March 3, 2018.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Russian overtures to Pakistan offer a badly needed diplomatic lifeline for the South Asian nation as it faces growing friction with Western powers over its alleged links to militants.</p><p>At US urging, and with backing from Britain, France and Germany, a global financial watchdog, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), last month decided to place Pakistan back on its watchlist of countries with inadequate terrorist-financing controls, potentially hurting Pakistan's fragile economy.</p><p>The US move, which Islamabad angrily dismissed as an effort to "embarrass" Pakistan, followed Washington's announcement in January to suspend $2 billion in military assistance.</p><p>Asif, Pakistan's foreign minister, said his nation made a historical error by "tilting 100 percent" to the West and was now eager build alliances closer to home with the likes of China, Russia and Turkey.</p><p>"We want to correct the imbalance of our foreign policy over 70 years," Asif told Reuters. "We are not divorcing that relationship (with the West). But we want to have a balance in our relationships, we want to be closer to our friends in our region."</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5a86b1815124c919676465b2-800/pakistan-to-send-troops-to-saudi-arabia-to-train-and-advise.jpg" alt="FILE PHOTO - Army personnel drive up to their base beside the ski resort in Malam Jabba, Pakistan February 7, 2017. Picture taken February 7, 2017. REUTERS/Caren Firouz" data-mce-source="Thomson Reuters" data-mce-caption="FILE PHOTO - Army personnel drive up to their base beside the ski resort in Malam Jabba" /><p class="source"><span>Thomson Reuters</span></p><p class="caption">Army personnel drive up to their base beside the ski resort in Malam Jabba, Pakistan February 7, 2017.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Defence minister Khan said Pakistan's military, which has historically been heavily reliant on US weapons and aircraft, may have no choice but to ramp up purchases from the likes of Russia.</p><p>The cooling relationship with Washington is already pushing Islamabad closer to China, which is investing about $60 billion in infrastructure in Pakistan. But analysts say Pakistan is wary of becoming overly dependent diplomatically on Beijing.</p><p>Pakistan is among several nations that have been courted by Moscow after falling out with Washington, including the Philippines and Qatar, but Russia's long-term aims for the Pakistan relationship are unclear, according to Petr Topychkanov, a senior researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.</p><p>"It's not very transparent, even in Russia," he said. "There is no serious public debate, there is no detailed explanation to the Russian public about what Russia wants in Pakistan."</p><p>Russia's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Moscow's increasingly close relations with Pakistan.</p><h2>Energy deals</h2><p>Russia and Pakistan are negotiating potential energy deals worth in excess of $10 billion, according to Pakistani energy officials.</p><p>Asif said four to five huge power projects "will cement our relationship further."</p><p>Russia last month appointed an honorary council in the Pakistan's northern Khyber Pukhtunkhwa province, where its companies are in talks to build an oil refinery and a power station.</p><p>But the biggest deals focus on gas supply and infrastructure to Pakistan, one of the world's fastest growing liquefied natural gas (LNG) import markets.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><img src="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/5a3021758229f250008b4c3e-1778/pakistan protest trump.jpg" alt="Pakistan Protest Trump" data-mce-source="AP Photo/Muhammad Sajjad" data-mce-caption="Pakistanis rally against America in Peshawar, Pakistan, Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2017." /><p class="source"><span>AP Photo/Muhammad Sajjad</span></p><p class="caption">Pakistanis rally against the US in Peshawar, Pakistan, August 30, 2017.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>"On a strategic basis, Russia is coming in very fast on the energy side," said a senior Pakistani energy official.</p><p>In October, Pakistan and Russia signed an inter-governmental agreement (IGA) on energy, paving the way for Russian state-giant Gazprom to enter negotiations to supply LNG to Pakistan.</p><p>The talks are expected to conclude within three months and Gazprom is considered "one of the front-runners" to clinch a long-term supply deal, according to the Pakistani official.</p><p>Based on two monthly LNG cargo deliveries, that deal would be worth about $9 billion over 15 years, he added.</p><p>There is also growing confidence that a gas pipeline due to be built by Russia, stretching 1,100 km (680 miles) from Lahore to the port city of Karachi, will go ahead.</p><p>US sanctions against Russian state conglomerate Rostec, as well as a dispute over North-South pipeline transport fees, have held up the $2 billion project since it was signed in 2015.</p><p>The North-South pipeline would be the biggest infrastructure deal by Russia since early 1970s, when Soviet engineers constructed the Pakistan Steel Mills industrial complex.</p><p>A Russian company, according to defense minister Khan, is eying up a deal to take over the disused Soviet-built steel mills.</p><p>(Reporting by Drazen Jorgic; additional reporting by Oksana Kobzeva in Moscow and Sanjeev Miglani in New Delhi; editing by Alex Richardson)</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/pakistan-tested-submarine-launched-nuclear-capable-missile-india-babur-2017-1">Pakistan says it has fired its first submarine-launched nuclear-capable missile</a></h3>        <div>            <iframe class="bijwplayerclass" data-player="jwplayer" src="https://content.jwplatform.com/players/U5OOjO1U-CEZHWCBG.html" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" scrolling="auto" style="margin:0px;" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><script>function receiveMessage(event){ console.log(event.data.fullscreen); Android.fullscreen(event.data.fullscreen); }window.addEventListener("message", receiveMessage, false);</script>        </div>    </div>

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