South Asia security experts said Islamabad hoped the procurement of 40 fifth-generation J-35 warplanes, KJ-500 early warning aircraft and the HQ-19 surface-to-air missile weapon systems would help deter any future Indian attacks by threatening heavy losses of expensive warplanes and missiles.
But New Delhi would also have to take into account Beijing’s motivations for positioning its best integrated air defence systems on India’s western flank, the analysts said.
According to Walter Ladwig, an associate professor of international relations at King’s College London, China’s forthcoming sale of advanced stealth jets, radar aircraft, and missile defences to Pakistan is a “strategic message” for India.
“However much China denies alignment, this move will be read in Delhi as further evidence that Beijing is prepared to underwrite Pakistan’s military posture despite Islamabad’s role in cross-border violence,” said Ladwig, who is also an associate fellow with the Navigating the Indo-Pacific programme at the Royal United Services Institute, a British military think tank.
