Pakistan takes steps to strengthen its navy
By Federico Bordonaro
The Pakistani navy recently assumed the command of the Coalition Maritime Security Campaign (CMSC) in the Persian Gulf region, making Pakistan the first country outside the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to lead such a cooperative effort against terrorism. Considering that the Pakistani naval forces are bound to receive more international attention because of this high-profile mission, it is worth making an assessment of their most recent developments.
Pakistan's navy currently has about 24,000 servicemen, manning
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about 50 vessels. The largest are the eight frigates of British lineage and five submarines.
The navy is supplementing the aging frigates with vessels of Chinese design. Last month Islamabad finalized a deal with China for the the local construction of a new F-22P frigate. The warship will be the fourth of this type provided by Beijing, according to a previous agreement reached last year. The latter also confirmed China's strong commitment to support Islamabad's navy through technology transfer and a deal to provide several Z-9C maritime helicopters.
At a time when India is beefing up its fleet (see Indian navy on the crest of a wave, Asia Times Online, June 18, 2005), Pakistan is upgrading its naval forces to achieve three vital goals: first, to improve and modernize its hardware and to expand its surface fleet; second, to shape an aggressive defense system in the face of India's rising power; and third, to protect its sea lines of communication (SLOCs) while at the same time strengthening its capability of attacking the enemy's.
The Sino-Pakistani deal is significant both from a political and a strategic point of view. Politically, it marks a new stage in a long-standing strategic partnership, whereby the two Asian powers recently signed a "Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Good-Neighborly Relations". The deal includes the joint production of the multi-role JF-17 Thunder fighter aircraft for the air force and also acquisition of a guided-missile attack craft based on a Chinese design. In addition, it foresees cooperation in nuclear-power generation, as well as strategic infrastructure projects, such as the widening of the Karakorum Highway.
The new frigates, derived from China's Jiangwei II class, will have command-and-control systems and weapons and sensors specifically modified to suit Pakistan's needs. Although many analysts highlight how the Chinese frigates suffer from the lack of a vertical-launch system of air-defense missiles, the warships - which serve as patrol combatants - have both anti-submarine and anti-ship capabilities as well as a modern radar control system. Pakistan will thus improve its patrolling capabilities and augment its existing surface fleet, as well as its local shipyards' potential for naval construction.
According to Jane's Information Group, "three of the vessels will be built by Hudong Zhonghua Shipbuilding Group, with keel-laying scheduled for the Chinese-built lead unit in early 2007 and delivery planned for 2009"; moreover, "the Chinese company will also become involved in preparing the Karachi Shipyard & Engineering Works (KSEW) to build and deliver the fourth F-22P frigate by 2013".
Pride of the fleet
However, the Pakistani navy's pride remains its submarines. It has five French diesel-electric subs divided into two classes, Khalid and Hashmat (Agosta 90b and 70), also produced locally (Pakistan being one of only a dozen nations capable of building submarines).
Generally speaking, although strategy must always be considered in the specific context of a war, the structure of Pakistan's maritime forces and its modernization program suggests they are designed to assure an aggressive defense against India's navy. In the framework of a short conventional conflict, submarines can rapidly inflict massive damage and shock to the enemy. In addition, they are difficult to intercept and destroy - barring the option of nuclear counter-strikes, whose political and strategic consequences are a separate matter.
The protection of its own coasts and an effective offensive against the enemy are key to Pakistan's strategic security. In this sense, the navy harkens back to memories of the 1965 war and "Operation Dwarka", the navy's first seaborne offensive operation (a naval flotilla attacked the Indian town of Dwarka in an attempt to draw Indian navy ships out where they could be intercepted by the submarine PNS Ghazi).
Maritime trade is obviously vital for both India and Pakistan, and another important geostrategic mission for Pakistan's navy is protection of sea lanes. More than 95% of goods are transported by ships. Sea trade is a pillar for Islamabad's economy, and the port of Karachi plays a fundamental role in this. Clearly, any disruption of the sea lanes, as well as possible port closures, would deliver a deadly blow to Pakistan in case of conflict.
According to security analyst Vijay Sakhuja, "the SLOCs serve as umbilical cords of a state's economy. They are also referred to as the arteries of a region's economy. During times of peace, the SLOCs serve as commercial trade routes, but during war, these routes are considered strategic paths."
The navy believes that the "protection of Pakistan's SLOCs, its 960-kilometer-long coastline and its ports, and especially the port of Karachi" to be a fundamental mission: "Barely 150km from the Indian border, Karachi has the only developed berthing facilities for handling the bulk of Pakistan's trade, as well as hosting naval dockyards, repair and overhauling facilities and the strategic national petroleum reserves."
In the case of a conventional conflict with India, one of Pakistan's main strategic priorities would be protecting the most critical SLOCs, which for Islamabad are the maritime routes running from Karachi to the Persian Gulf, the Suez Canal, East Africa and the Far East, while quickly delivering devastating blows to India's traffic routes. Again, submarines would play a decisive role.
Islamabad finds itself in a difficult strategic environment. The endurance of the Islamist radicalism and al-Qaeda's presence in the regions bordering Afghanistan is causing tension with Washington and is forcing the administration of President General Pervez Musharraf to reassess its national-security strategy. At the same time, India's rise as a great power means Pakistan cannot abandon its classical security priority, that is, to maintain a regional balance of power with New Delhi. Therefore, strategic cooperation with China and France to boost its own maritime power will continue to be in Islamabad's best interests.
Federico Bordonaro is senior analyst with the Power and Interest News Report. He can be contacted at fbordonaro@pinrNOSPAM.com.
By Federico Bordonaro
The Pakistani navy recently assumed the command of the Coalition Maritime Security Campaign (CMSC) in the Persian Gulf region, making Pakistan the first country outside the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to lead such a cooperative effort against terrorism. Considering that the Pakistani naval forces are bound to receive more international attention because of this high-profile mission, it is worth making an assessment of their most recent developments.
Pakistan's navy currently has about 24,000 servicemen, manning
http://goldsea.com/GAAN/adclick.php...p://www.atimes.com/atimes/china_business.html
about 50 vessels. The largest are the eight frigates of British lineage and five submarines.
The navy is supplementing the aging frigates with vessels of Chinese design. Last month Islamabad finalized a deal with China for the the local construction of a new F-22P frigate. The warship will be the fourth of this type provided by Beijing, according to a previous agreement reached last year. The latter also confirmed China's strong commitment to support Islamabad's navy through technology transfer and a deal to provide several Z-9C maritime helicopters.
At a time when India is beefing up its fleet (see Indian navy on the crest of a wave, Asia Times Online, June 18, 2005), Pakistan is upgrading its naval forces to achieve three vital goals: first, to improve and modernize its hardware and to expand its surface fleet; second, to shape an aggressive defense system in the face of India's rising power; and third, to protect its sea lines of communication (SLOCs) while at the same time strengthening its capability of attacking the enemy's.
The Sino-Pakistani deal is significant both from a political and a strategic point of view. Politically, it marks a new stage in a long-standing strategic partnership, whereby the two Asian powers recently signed a "Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Good-Neighborly Relations". The deal includes the joint production of the multi-role JF-17 Thunder fighter aircraft for the air force and also acquisition of a guided-missile attack craft based on a Chinese design. In addition, it foresees cooperation in nuclear-power generation, as well as strategic infrastructure projects, such as the widening of the Karakorum Highway.
The new frigates, derived from China's Jiangwei II class, will have command-and-control systems and weapons and sensors specifically modified to suit Pakistan's needs. Although many analysts highlight how the Chinese frigates suffer from the lack of a vertical-launch system of air-defense missiles, the warships - which serve as patrol combatants - have both anti-submarine and anti-ship capabilities as well as a modern radar control system. Pakistan will thus improve its patrolling capabilities and augment its existing surface fleet, as well as its local shipyards' potential for naval construction.
According to Jane's Information Group, "three of the vessels will be built by Hudong Zhonghua Shipbuilding Group, with keel-laying scheduled for the Chinese-built lead unit in early 2007 and delivery planned for 2009"; moreover, "the Chinese company will also become involved in preparing the Karachi Shipyard & Engineering Works (KSEW) to build and deliver the fourth F-22P frigate by 2013".
Pride of the fleet
However, the Pakistani navy's pride remains its submarines. It has five French diesel-electric subs divided into two classes, Khalid and Hashmat (Agosta 90b and 70), also produced locally (Pakistan being one of only a dozen nations capable of building submarines).
Generally speaking, although strategy must always be considered in the specific context of a war, the structure of Pakistan's maritime forces and its modernization program suggests they are designed to assure an aggressive defense against India's navy. In the framework of a short conventional conflict, submarines can rapidly inflict massive damage and shock to the enemy. In addition, they are difficult to intercept and destroy - barring the option of nuclear counter-strikes, whose political and strategic consequences are a separate matter.
The protection of its own coasts and an effective offensive against the enemy are key to Pakistan's strategic security. In this sense, the navy harkens back to memories of the 1965 war and "Operation Dwarka", the navy's first seaborne offensive operation (a naval flotilla attacked the Indian town of Dwarka in an attempt to draw Indian navy ships out where they could be intercepted by the submarine PNS Ghazi).
Maritime trade is obviously vital for both India and Pakistan, and another important geostrategic mission for Pakistan's navy is protection of sea lanes. More than 95% of goods are transported by ships. Sea trade is a pillar for Islamabad's economy, and the port of Karachi plays a fundamental role in this. Clearly, any disruption of the sea lanes, as well as possible port closures, would deliver a deadly blow to Pakistan in case of conflict.
According to security analyst Vijay Sakhuja, "the SLOCs serve as umbilical cords of a state's economy. They are also referred to as the arteries of a region's economy. During times of peace, the SLOCs serve as commercial trade routes, but during war, these routes are considered strategic paths."
The navy believes that the "protection of Pakistan's SLOCs, its 960-kilometer-long coastline and its ports, and especially the port of Karachi" to be a fundamental mission: "Barely 150km from the Indian border, Karachi has the only developed berthing facilities for handling the bulk of Pakistan's trade, as well as hosting naval dockyards, repair and overhauling facilities and the strategic national petroleum reserves."
In the case of a conventional conflict with India, one of Pakistan's main strategic priorities would be protecting the most critical SLOCs, which for Islamabad are the maritime routes running from Karachi to the Persian Gulf, the Suez Canal, East Africa and the Far East, while quickly delivering devastating blows to India's traffic routes. Again, submarines would play a decisive role.
Islamabad finds itself in a difficult strategic environment. The endurance of the Islamist radicalism and al-Qaeda's presence in the regions bordering Afghanistan is causing tension with Washington and is forcing the administration of President General Pervez Musharraf to reassess its national-security strategy. At the same time, India's rise as a great power means Pakistan cannot abandon its classical security priority, that is, to maintain a regional balance of power with New Delhi. Therefore, strategic cooperation with China and France to boost its own maritime power will continue to be in Islamabad's best interests.
Federico Bordonaro is senior analyst with the Power and Interest News Report. He can be contacted at fbordonaro@pinrNOSPAM.com.
