China delivers warship to Pakistan navy

China delivers warship to Pakistan navy, originally uploaded by www.first-pakistan.blogspot.com.

China delivers warship to Pakistan navy

China on Thursday delivered the first of four state-of-the-art frigates
commissioned by nuclear-armed Pakistan from top ally Beijing, a naval
spokesman said.

"The first F-22P Frigate constructed for the Pakistan navy at the Hudong
Zhonghua Shipyard in Shanghai was delivered to Pakistan on Thursday," said
Lieutenant Commander Shakeel Ahmed.

In keeping with contracts signed between China and Pakistan in 2005, the
frigates will be equipped with anti-submarine helicopters,
surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles and other defence systems.

"The F-22P frigates will not only enhance the war fighting potential of the
Pakistan navy but will also strengthen the indigenous ship-building
capability of the country," said Ahmed.

The announcement came two days after Pakistan hit out at India, branding its
rival's first nuclear-powered submarine "detrimental" to regional peace and
vowing to take "appropriate steps" to maintain a "strategic balance".

Relations between nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan have plummeted
since Islamist gunmen killed 166 people in Mumbai last November, attacks
that New Delhi blamed on banned Pakistani group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

India on Sunday launched the first of five planned submarines by naming the
6,000-tonne INS Arihant (Destroyer of Enemies), powered by an 85-megawatt
nuclear reactor that can reach 44 kilometres an hour (24 knots).

China is Pakistan's strongest ally and Islamabad relies heavily on Beijing
for its defence needs.

Many Chinese companies operate in Pakistan and China is involved in the
construction of a deep-sea port at Gwadar on the Arabian Sea.