<

Beijing Narrows Pakistan Arms Gap
Wednesday, January 9, 2002
By Lynne O'Donnell
The Sunday Times

India had 738 combat aircraft against Pakistan's 353. New Delhi has an almost five-fold advantage in transport aircraft and six times the number of combat helicopters.

CHINA is helping Pakistan close its weapons gap with India by sending large shipments of military hardware and strategic nuclear "assets" in recent weeks, a newspaper report has revealed.

Just days before Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji flies to India for a state visit, The News, a Pakistani English-language daily, reported that five Chinese ships loaded with aircraft and spare parts had arrived in Karachi last month.

The paper also said China had made "speedy delivery" of equipment for Pakistan's nuclear arsenal, which was built with Chinese assistance, over the Karakorum Highway linking the two countries.

Hours after the report emerged, Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf told a group of US senators he would soon announce a new tension-easing policy to eradicate terrorism from south Asia.
(More: SundayTimes.com News Source)
2002 © The Sunday Times.

Dan