Chinese fighter jet FC-1 Xiaolong of the Pakistani Air Force

Islamabad: Pakistan’s army,  is going through a strange dilemma these days and a situation has arisen between a well on one side and a ditch on the other. A Pakistani army is continuously buying fighter jets, drones, radars and artillery from its all-weather friend China, while its dependence on American weapons continues. The reason for this is that China’s weapons are still not as reliable as those of America. This is the reason why Pakistan’s dependence on American F-16 fighter jets continues. On the other hand, the tension between America and China is increasing due to which it is becoming very difficult for Pakistan to balance between the two.

In Pakistan's 11th International Defence Exhibition started in Karachi, 7 big companies of China showed many state-of-the-art weapons to the representatives of more than 50 countries of the world. Wing Loong Drone, CH Series Drone, Multi Role Drone Ship, Y-9E Transport Plane, VT-4 Main Battle Tank, Electronic Warfare Defence System and others. Pakistan is already using Chinese weapons on a large scale.

The Pakistani army includes China’s VT-4 tank, SH-15 howitzer cannon, Type 054 frigate, JF-17 and J-10C fighter jets and ZDK-03 early warning aircraft. China’s official newspaper Global Times, quoting Pakistan’s defence officials, claimed that China’s military weapons are famous worldwide. There is no doubt that China is supplying its weapons to Pakistan keeping India in mind. Apart from this, China wants Pakistan to crush the rebels opposing CPEC with the help of its weapons.

Experts say that the Chinese weapons received by Pakistan is of poor quality. This is the reason why Pakistan’s outdated F-16 and other weapons of western countries are still most effective against India. Recently, there was news that 4 Zulfiqar frigates made in China of Pakistan Navy were equipped with totally ineffective electronics. Not only this, the engines were also seriously lacking in power and reliability and the weapons were also not working properly. Despite this Pakistan is forced to operate them as a desperate measure to keep the Indian Navy at bay.

Apart from this, Pakistani tanks, radars, air defence systems made in China are also facing a credibility crisis. During the recent "accidental" BrahMos firing by India, Chinese supplied Pakistani early warning radar system, a component of the HQ-9 air defence system failed to identify and track the Indian supersonic missile. The Chinese tanks that the Pakistan Army has received are frequently breaking down and not working properly. There is also a problem with its goals. Because of these useless Chinese weapons, Pakistan is being forced to maintain good relations with America. Recently, America had given and multi-million dolour F-16 package to Pakistan even after India’s protest, which many view it as a antagonistic act for India's tacit support to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and its open support in the UN for Russia.