Karachi Shipbuilding Boom Expected With Pakistan Navy Modernization

[Riaz Haq]

Pakistan is launching domestic construction of warships, submarines and missile boats as part of its ambitious naval modernization program in collaboration with China, according to media reports.

Karachi Shipyard

Chinese media reports have described a building program involving six of eight S-20 AIP-equipped variants of the Type-039A/Type-041 submarine under negotiation; four "Improved F-22P" frigates equipped with enhanced sensors and weaponry (possibly including the HQ-17 surface-to-air missile developed from the Russian Tor 1/SA-N-9); and six Type-022 Houbei stealth catamaran missile boats, to be built by Pakistan's state-owned shipbuilder Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KSEW), according to DefenseNews.

Pakistan is expanding and modernizing its underwater fleet with 8 additional AIP-equipped submarines jointly built with China.  Mansoor Ahmed of Quaid-e-Azam University told Defense News that AIP-equipped conventional submarines "provide reliable second strike platforms, [and] an assured capability resides with [nuclear-powered attack and nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines], which are technically very complex and challenging to construct and operate compared to SSKs, and also very capital intensive."

Expansion of KSEW in Karachi includes a new foundry, fabrication facilities to cover all aspects of ship construction, berthing facilities, and two graving docks of 26,000 and 18,000 dead weight tons, spread over 71 acres. A 7,881-ton ship lift transfer system will be completed next year. KSEW will expand to occupy facilities vacated by the Navy as it transfers from Karachi to Ormara. The Pakistan Navy Dockyard, which is adjacent to KSEW, already has facilities upgraded by the French during construction of Agosta-90B submarines.

The Pakistan Navy modernization efforts further expands existing China-Pakistan military manufacturing collaboration at Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) which has resulted in design and manufacturing of JF-17 fighter jets for Pakistan Air Force.

JF-17 Fighter Jet

In addition to designing and building military hardware together, Pakistan and China are also increasingly collaborating on manufacturing consumer appliances and products. The Pakistan-China economic corridor project includes setting up of several special economic zones for this purpose. A good example of this cooperation is Haier-Ruba special economic zone in Lahore.  Haier-Ruba joint venture in Pakistan has announced plans to start manufacturing laptops and smartphones in Lahore this year, according to the JV chairman Shah Faisal Afridi. The Haier-Ruba group is one of the largest manufacturers of polyester yarn and home appliances in the country.

The growth of both military and civilian manufacturing industries is helping to develop Pakistan's human capital and creating job opportunities for engineers, technicians and other workers. 

Pakistan has taken a page from China's industrialization playbook which shows that the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) led the nation's industrial growth, first with military hardware and then expanding into consumer and industrial product manufacturing.

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Pakistan's Human Capital

[Riaz Haq]

Game-Changing Chinese Missile To Pakistan Could Dent Navy's BrahMos Advantage

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/game-changing-chinese-missile-to-pa...

An export variant of the YJ-12 missile, the CM-302, is likely to be the primary weapon on board four new Chinese frigates being built for the Pakistan Navy at the Hudong-Zhonghua shipyard in Shanghai.
The CM-302 matches both the supersonic speed and the range of the Indian Navy's BrahMos anti-ship cruise missiles, which have been deployed on several front-line frigates and destroyers of the Navy.

Senior defence officials monitoring the sale of new generation Chinese Type 054 frigates to Pakistan have told NDTV that the ships are likely to come armed with the CM-302, which they identify as a "new threat which represents a new capability."

But these officers also tell NDTV that "there is a long way to go for these missiles to become a credible threat for the Indian Navy" since the Pakistan Navy still lacks long-range sensors which need to target Indian platforms before a CM-302 can actually be fired.

"Possessing accurate targeting data, surveillance capability, and having the ability to penetrate a dense [Indian Navy] electronic counter-measures environment are a part of a complex matrix" that the Pakistan Navy's new frigates would need to overcome before they can attempt a missile launch.

[Riaz Haq]

(Pakistan Navy's) Type-054A and (Indian Navy's) Talwar class displace approximately 4,000 tonnes and have a length of around 130 metres. The Type-054A uses a surface-to-air missile system called the HQ-16, which experts claim is derived from the Russian Shtil missile, on service on the Talwar class frigates. Interestingly, Russia had sold the Shtil missile to China in the late 1990s. The Shtil has a maximum range of about 50km.

https://www.theweek.in/news/world/2019/01/04/advanced-warships-chin...

However, the Type-054A has an advantage over the existing Talwar class ships as the former use a vertical launch system (VLS), which is buried in the ship's deck, to store and fire its HQ-16. The Indian Navy's Talwar class frigates use an older 'single-arm' launcher than can fire only one missile at a time, while the VLS allows the launch of multiple missiles simultaneously.

The HQ-16, which relies on 'passive' radar homing to detect targets, is considered inferior to the new Indo-Israeli Barak-8 missile entering service on new Indian Navy frigates and destroyers. Furthermore, India is also buying four upgraded Talwar class frigates from Russia that is expected to have VLS for surface-to-air missiles. The Talwar class ships, which use the supersonic Klub and Brahmos missiles, are regarded to have better anti-ship capabilities than the PLAN Type-054A class, which still use subsonic weapons. It is yet unclear what anti-ship missiles Pakistan will use.

The China Daily report quoted Cao Weidong, an expert, as saying the Pakistan Navy was expected to order Chinese-origin sensors and weapons for its new frigates unlike in the past, when Islamabad would mount Western-origin systems on ships purchased from China.

The Type-054A class ships have been considered by experts to be the 'workhorses' of the rapidly modernising PLAN. Their anti-air and anti-ship capabilities are more limited than the systems present on China's new destroyer classes. The relatively small size of the Type-054AP frigates means there is little scope to mount heavier radars and longer-range anti-aircraft or anti-ship weapons.

In addition, the Pakistan Navy continues its reliance on submarines as the main means to deter India; Islamabad signed a deal to buy eight submarines from China in 2015. These submarines are expected to remain the main threat to Indian ships and could also serve as more survivable platforms to launch land-attack cruise missiles.

In conclusion, while the new Type-054AP frigates will be the most capable ships in the Pakistan Navy, they are not expected to significantly alter the balance of power in the region, given Pakistan's limitations in airborne anti-submarine capabilities. It can be argued that the bigger threat posed by the Type-054AP frigates is the fact that the new ships will draw Pakistan closer to China at a time when there is growing worry about a military dimension to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

[Riaz Haq]

#Pakistan’s #Chinese made 3D long-range anti-stealth radar is capable of detecting #stealth aircraft like F-22 from 500km (310 miles) away with its active phased array antenna. it could also guide surface-to-air missiles to strike incoming aircraft. #PAF

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3038954/chinese-sh...

China is reported to be boosting its arms links with South Asian nations, with further supply of an advanced anti-stealth radar to Pakistan as well as frigates to Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
Jane’s Defence Weekly, a magazine reporting on military and corporate affairs, said it had identified Chinese-made JY-27A counter-very-low-observable radar from satellite images of Pakistan’s Mianwali Air Base, captured on August 29.
This 3D long-range radar is capable of detecting stealth aircraft such as the F-22 from 500km (310 miles) away with its active phased array antenna using very high frequency waves. Either installed on land or mobile on vehicles, it is jamming-resistant and could also guide surface-to-air missiles to strike incoming aircraft.
The radar is believed to have arrived at the airbase in northeast Pakistan between June 5 and August 29, and was not fully operational as of September 2, according to Jane’s.

Neither Pakistan nor China made the sale of the JY-27A public, but earlier this month representatives of both sides attended a ceremony at a Shanghai shipyard to mark the steel-cutting of a second batch of Type 054A guided-missile frigates.


They were the third and fourth vessels the Chinese shipbuilder CSSC had built for the Pakistan Navy. Construction on the first two of the Type 054A/P began in December 2018 and they are expected to be delivered in 2021.
Is China’s US$62 billion investment fuelling resentment in Pakistan?
3 Jul 2018

Type 054A frigate has been the main strength frigate in service with China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy since 2007. The Pakistan Navy already has four F22P frigates in service – a Chinese design based on the previous Type 053 and Type 054 – and three of them were built in China.
“Compared with their potential adversary the Indian Navy, the Pakistani navy will be better equipped,” Shi Lao, a Shanghai-based military commentator, said.

Last week’s amateur photos also showed that two newly retired PLA Navy frigates, Type 053H3 Putian and Lianyungang, had been refurbished in Shanghai and painted in the colours and numbers of the Bangladesh Navy. They had been bought by the latter and are expected to be handed over by the end of the year.

China also gifted a retired Type 053H2G ship, Tongling, to the Sri Lanka Navy. It was renamed Parakramabahu and commissioned in Colombo in late August, adding to the Chinese-built warships operating in the Indian Ocean.

Chinese efforts to strengthen military ties in the region have long caused concern in India, whose “string of pearls” theory contends that China is encircling India by developing relationships with its neighbours around the Indian Ocean.
“China’s military cooperation with South Asian nations is nothing new. It has been going on for decades,” said Wang Dehua, a South Asia expert at the Shanghai Municipal Centre for International Studies.
Wang said that what China offered to those countries, including Pakistan, would not pose much threat to India because it could not match the level of armament that India possessed or had access to, such as aircraft carriers and Su-30 fighters.
India’s military ties with countries including Sri Lanka and Bangladesh were also much stronger and more long-standing, he said.
“India sees South Asia as its backyard and is paranoid about China’s presence in the region,” Wang said. “Such a mindset should end.”

[Riaz Haq]

#Pakistan’s New Type-039B AIP #Submarines: Armed with #nuclear-tipped Babar cruise #missiles, these subs will form part of Pakistan’s nuclear deterrent. #Karachi https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2020/10/pakistans-new-chinese-...

The Pakistan Navy's expansion is gearing up in Karachi. Major enhancements are evident at a shipyard, where a new construction hall and a dry dock greatly increase capacity. Although details are scarce, it seems likely that the local construction of Chinese-designed AIP (Air Independent Power) submarines will take place there.

The eight Type-039B ‘Hangor Class’ submarines will be a major boost to the Pakistan Navy. They will more than double the size of the Pakistan Navy’s submarine fleet.

The new submarines are variant of the Chinese Navy’s Type-039A Yuan Class. Construction will be split between the China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC) and Karachi Shipyard & Engineering Works (KSEW) in Karachi. KSEW previously participated in local construction of Pakistan’s French designed Agosta class submarines.

The construction site in Karachi may put to rest previous reports that the subs would be built in Ormara. In 2016 it was reported that the local submarine construction would occur at a new Submarine Rebuild Complex (SRC) being built there. No significant construction work is evident at Ormara.

The new construction hall and dry dock are at the southern end of KSEW’s Karachi shipyard site. Footings for the halls was first observed in 2015. The twin-lane halls have slowly taken shape since then. The outer shell appears largely complete. Under their roof there should be enough room to build two submarines in parallel.

Work on the aligned dry dock appears to have started in 2016. It is a Norwegian designed Syncrolift ship-lift type built out over the water. Manufacture of the sections likely took place in China. The dry dock is 126m (415 ft) long and 32m (105 ft) across and has a lifting capacity of 7,881 tons. This is large enough for the new submarines, and would allow frigate sized warships and larger submarines in future.

Based on current information the first of the new submarines, built in China, is expected to be delivered in 2022. Local construction of the last four hulls will last through to 2028. The acquisition from China is part of a trend. Several major Pakistan Navy warship programs have gone to China in recent years. And the Pakistan Navy and Chinese Navy already cooperate closely, included close exercises involving Chinese warships and Pakistan Navy submarines.

The construction halls will be conveniently close to the Pakistan Navy’s main submarine berths. They are also just north of the SSGNs (Special Service Group (Navy)) base at PNS Iqbal. This is where the Pakistan Navy’s X-Craft midget submarine program is based. It seems logical that any local construction of midget submarines will also take place at the new site.

The technology transfer will benefit KSEW. Their Stirling-based AIP (Air Independent Power/Propulsion) technology is different from the French MESMA system installed on Pakistan’s Agosta-90B type boats. Pakistan remains the only country to adopt the MESMA system. Type-039B submarines are a relatively conservative design however.

The Type-039B submarines are likely to combine Chinese systems and weapons with Pakistani systems. Local weapons are expected to include the nuclear-capable Babur cruise missile. Armed with these the boats will form part of Pakistan’s nuclear deterrent. How this deterrence role will be reconciled with typical attack submarine duties remains unclear.

[Riaz Haq]

Keel laying ceremony of #Pakistan Navy’s MILGEM class warship held at #Karachi shipyard. The corvette is being built with #Turkey’s help with expected completion date in 2024 | The Express Tribune

https://tribune.com.pk/story/2269841/keel-laying-ceremony-of-pakist...


“Equipped with state-of-the-art weapons and state-of-the-art sensors, the aircraft includes surface-to-air, surface-to-air missiles and a command and control system,” the official statement said. “The inclusion of these ships in the Pakistan Navy will significantly enhance the capabilities of the Pakistan Navy and help maintain peace, security and balance of power in the Indian Ocean region.”

Earlier, Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works Managing Director Rear Admiral Athar Saleem in his welcome address highlighted that Karachi Shipyard is fully self-sufficient and the government and Pakistan Navy in the defence shipbuilding industry itself.

“It is on track to meet the goals of dependency,” he stressed and added that the launch of the great project with the brotherly country of Turkey would open new avenues for further cooperation in the field of construction of domestically built warships in Pakistan.

The purpose of building corvettes in Pakistan is to further hone the capabilities of the local shipbuilding industry and Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works, it added.

It maintained that the ship is equipped with stealth technology and is being built according to the standards of modern ships.

“The second MILGEM Class Corvette would be handed over to the Pakistan Navy in the early months of 2024,” the statement said.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ASFAT Esad Akgün in an interview described the keel-laying ceremony as “beautiful”.

“Today, we laid the keel of 3rd Ship of PN MILGEM Project and the block we saw at the slipway is not just a pile of steel, it’s the great step of giant collaboration between the two brother country, through ASFAT and Pakistan Navy,” Akgün added.

He further said that ASFAT is a part of Ministry of National Defence of the Republic of Turkey, and vested the competency of being a company, which can dynamically manoeuvre with flexibility together with its highly capable workers.

“In order to serve efficiently, we have established ASFAT Pakistan to be able to integrate all defence capabilities of both nations,” he said, “We will be there at the disposal of Pakistan armed forces to facilitate every aspect of defence cooperation of our nations.”

"In order to increase our capabilities, we are obliged to take advantage of mutual capabilities, to give strength to each other, he said, adding, “This is the purpose of ASFAT, this is my mission.”

[Riaz Haq]

#Pakistan Navy commissions new #Dutch -built 2,300-ton PNS Tabuk corvette. Yarmook and Tabuk off-shore patrol vehicles are multipurpose, highly adaptable platforms, which can carry out different operations, including #intelligence, special ops & #combat

https://www.naval-technology.com/news/pakistan-navy-commissions-new...

Pakistan Navy has commissioned its new Damen-built corvette, named PNS Tabuk, at Romania’s Port of Constanta.

The vessel is the second of two 2,300t corvettes that Damen constructed under a contract signed by the Pakistan Ministry of Defence in June 2017.

The first vessel, PNS Yarmook, joined the fleet of Pakistan Navy in February.

In September last year, Damen launched the second offshore patrol vessel for the Pakistan Navy at its shipyard in Galati, Romania.

The vessels are multipurpose, highly adaptable platforms, which can carry out different operations in difficult maritime environments.

A helicopter and an unmanned aerial vessel (UAV), along with two rigid-hulled inflatable boats (RHIBs), can be simultaneously launched from the vessels.

Damen Shipyards Galati MD Flemming Sorensen said: “Damen has been involved in many projects in Pakistan since 1986 and we are very proud of this long-lasting and trusting cooperation.

“Such an achievement is only possible with good coordination, skilful workmanship, excellent teamwork, and good cooperation between all parties involved.


“Despite the unprecedented challenges of the pandemic, the Pakistan, Romanian and Dutch project teams have managed, with perseverance, to continue their work to successful completion.”


The company will provide assistance during the service of PNS Tabuk.

Last month, a keel was laid for the Pakistan Navy third MILGEM-class corvette during a ceremony held at Karachi Shipyard & Engineering Works Limited (KS&EW).

In 2018, the Pakistan Navy signed a contract with Turkey’s ASFAT to procure four MILGEM-class corvettes from STM.

[Riaz Haq]

#Turkish President Erdogan launches welding of 3rd Milgem warship being built for #Pakistan #Navy. Two of Milgem corvettes will be built in #Turkey and the other 2 in Pakistan, at #Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KSEW) with technology transfer. https://www.dawn.com/news/1603331

Speaking at the ceremony, President Erdogan said Pakistan is "our brotherly country with whom Turkey enjoys excellent relations".

He underscored that the defence collaboration for the construction of Milgem class warships was another milestone in Turkey-Pakistan defence ties.


President Erdogan said both Pakistan and Turkey were living in difficult geographical regions and both countries were facing similar challenges. He affirmed that Turkey would continue to support friendly and allied countries in the defence field.

Referring to his visit to Pakistan last year, President Erdogan said the two countries signed a Strategic Economic Framework that would provide the necessary institutional framework to further enhance bilateral ties.

All Turkish dignitaries who spoke at the ceremony hailed the Pakistan-Turkish brotherly relations and reiterated Turkey's support to Pakistan on core issues of its national interest.

The contract for four Milgem class corvettes for Pakistan Navy with concurrent Transfer of Technology (ToT) was signed with ASFAT Inc, a Turkish state-owned Defence contractor firm in 2018.

According to the plan, two corvettes will be built in Turkey and the other two will be built in Pakistan, at the Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KSEW) — Pakistan Navy's specialised shipbuilding division — that also involves technology transfer.

Milgem vessels are 99 metres long with a displacement capacity of 2,400 tonnes and can move at a speed of 29 nautical miles.

These anti-submarine combat frigates, which can be hidden from the radar, will further enhance the defence capability of the Pakistan Navy.

[Riaz Haq]

#China launches 2nd Type 054A/P frigate for #Pakistan Navy. It's a stealthy surface ship equipped with modern surface, subsurface and anti-air weapons, sensors and combat management systems. It has an advanced radar & large number of long range missiles. https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202101/1214356.shtml#.YBSuvCi3FqA.t...

China launched the second Type 054A/P frigate for Pakistan on Friday in Shanghai, as the Pakistan Navy Chief Naval Overseer highlighted at the launch ceremony that induction of the Type 054A/P warships will significantly enhance Pakistan's maritime defense and deterrence capabilities.

The launch of the second Type 054A/P frigate was held at Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard in Shanghai on Friday, reads a statement the Pakistan Navy sent to the Global Times on the same day.

The occasion coincides with the completion of 70 years of Pakistan-China diplomatic relations built upon historic bonds of friendship and mutual trust, the statement said.

The Pakistan Navy has contracted the construction of four Type 054A/P frigates from China since 2017, and the first ship was launched in August 2020, media reported.

All the ships are being delivered as per the planned schedule, the Pakistan Navy statement said.

These will be some of the most technologically advanced platforms of the Pakistan Navy Surface Fleet, equipped with modern surface, subsurface and anti-air weapons, sensors and combat management systems, Admiral M Amjad Khan Niazi, Chief of the Naval Staff of the Pakistan Navy, told the Global Times in a recent exclusive interview.

"These ships will boost [the] potency of our fleet and significantly contribute in maintaining peace and security in the region," the Pakistani Admiral said.

Commodore Azfar Humayun, Pakistan Navy Chief Naval Overseer, said at the launch ceremony that he acknowledges the commitment and hard work of China Shipbuilding Trading Company and Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard to keep this important program on track in the difficult times of the ongoing global pandemic, according to the Pakistan Navy statement.

Zhang Junshe, a senior research fellow at the PLA Naval Military Studies Research Institute, told the Global Times in a previous interview that the Type 054A, on which the Type 054A/P is based, is China's most advanced frigate.

Compared with previous Chinese frigates, the new version has better air defense capability, as it is equipped with an improved radar system and a larger amount of missiles with a longer range, Zhang said, noting that the Type 054A frigate also has world-class stealth capability.

The Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard also launched China's third Type 075 amphibious assault ship on Friday.

[Riaz Haq]

Focus on Pakistan Navy

https://www.thefridaytimes.com/focus-on-pakistan-navy/

Pakistan Navy is demonstrably the most neglected service. There are reasons for this state of affairs, all of them bad.

One, as the largest and senior-most service, the Pakistan Army has traditionally dominated military-operational thinking and plans.

Two, the Army’s politico-praetorian streak has added another dimension to its heft and further ensured it gets the lion’s share of defence allocations.

Three, air and naval platforms are almost always big ticket items and require monies that are difficult to find in a poor country like Pakistan.

Four, historically, even when Muslim empires dominated large parts of the world, the ruling dynasts — barring some attempts by the Ottomans — neglected naval power. To stress the salience of this point, one only need contrast the naval exploits of Italian city-states, the Portuguese, the Dutch and the English with, for instance, the Muslim rulers of India.

What makes this Muslim reticence even more surprising is the fact that Arabs were great seafarers and navigators and traded with the littoral states of the Indian Ocean. For example, Ahmed Ibn-e Majid was an Arab navigator and cartographer whose book, “The Book of the Benefits of the Principles and Foundations of Seamanship,” was used by navigators right up to the 18th Century. The book discussed the difference between coastal and open-sea sailing, the locations of ports from East Africa to Indonesia, accounts of the monsoon and other seasonal winds, typhoons and other topics for professional navigators. [NB: for a detailed account of how difficult seafaring was and the five different seafaring traditions in the ancient world, the first chapter of Daniel Headrick’s Power Over Peoples… is a great primer. I am thankful to Dr Ilhan Niaz for pointing it to me.]


Five, this land-focused approach to warfare has continued in Pakistan. As mentioned above, this is due to the power of the army which (a) remains bound by traditional thinking and (b) has stymied any fresh thinking about war itself, including maritime security and the importance of naval power to a state’s offensive and defensive capabilities.

As I said earlier, these are all bad reasons.

Yet, despite these handicaps, the PN has acted professionally and remains prepared for the defence of territorial waters. To expect any more from it would be like expecting a sedan to win a Formula 1 race. Accordingly, the Pakistan Navy’s performance has to be evaluated within the functions and framework of a brown-, or at most green-water navy.

The PN is holding its 7th AMAN (Peace) exercise off the coast of Karachi in February. AMAN exercises began in March 2007. The exercise, which has harbour and sea phases, has drawn naval contingents from around the world. This year’s new entrant is a Russian naval contingent from its Baltic Fleet.

According to the Russian Navy’s website, Russia plans to send a frigate, a patrol ship, a tugboat, a sea-based helicopter and some other units. This is also the first time since 2011 that Russia will take part in a naval exercise with naval contingents from NATO countries. The last time Russian naval continent participated in naval drills with NATO vessels was in 2011 in a NATO-led exercise codenamed Bold Monarch held off the coast of Spain.

Exercise AMAN focuses on interoperability with other navies in anti-Piracy and counterterrorism operations. The drill allows navies to discuss best practices and establish operational relationships towards the common goal of maritime security.

Pakistan Navy is also the only regional navy since 2004 to be part of US-led Coalition Task Force 150 and 151 under the broader umbrella of Coalition Maritime Campaign Plan. PN has also commanded CTF-150 nine times, a distinction.

[Riaz Haq]

Focus on Pakistan Navy by Ejaz Haider

https://www.thefridaytimes.com/focus-on-pakistan-navy/

Pakistan Navy is also the only regional navy since 2004 to be part of US-led Coalition Task Force 150 and 151 under the broader umbrella of Coalition Maritime Campaign Plan. PN has also commanded CTF-150 nine times, a distinction.

But while it is important to list the professional achievements of PN within its resource constraints, it is equally important to point out that Pakistan must review its navy’s role. The famous US naval officer and theoretician, Alfred Mahan wrote in his “The Influence of Sea Power Upon World History”: “The history of sea power is largely, though by no means solely, a narrative of contests between nations, of mutual rivalries, of violence frequently culminating in war.” Mahan also argues, somewhat exaggeratedly, that a country’s military and political strength directly correlates with their sea power. As is well known, Mahan’s thinking greatly influenced the US’ approach to command of the seas.


There’s much literature on the correlation between technology, naval expeditions and power projection and European imperialism. According to Hedrick, “The innovativeness of the West came from two sources. One is a culture that encourages the domination of nature through experimentation, scientific research, and the rewards of capitalism. The other is the competitive nature of the Western world…”. A similar nexus between capitalism, scientific and technological innovations and imperialism is made by Yuval Noah Harari in “Sapiens.”

But imperialism (even of the non-occupation kind) requires projecting power. Until the arrival of the digital world, power was projected through powerful navies. Pax Britannica was underpinned by a small island country’s formidable naval power. Britain displaced the Portuguese and the Dutch as the dominant naval power and the French could not challenge British naval power even when Napoleon was winning battles on land.

Even today a blue-water navy is the ultimate symbol of the reach of a state’s flag. As British naval historian Andrew Lambert says, “Sea power played a large role in the Allied victory, as the sea determined the control of global communications and getting the most advantage out of food, raw materials, manpower, and industrial products.”

In 1914, Britain dominated global communications and resources by sea power. The Allies economically blockaded Germany. They also used unrestricted submarine warfare in 1915 and 1917. Germans called it “Britain’s Oceanic Tyranny”.

It is interesting to note the naval component of China’s military modernisation programme. By all estimates, China has fast-tracked its development of naval power because Beijing understands that without naval power projection, it cannot dominate the South and East China Seas. And it also knows that it will be contending against the US and its allies.

India, Pakistan’s primary threat, is trying to develop blue-water capability. However, if a blue water navy is defined as “a maritime force capable of sustained operation across the deep waters of open oceans,” Indian Navy can only be called a limited-range blue-water navy. A blue-water navy should also allow “a country to project power far from the home country”. And while India has operated an aircraft carrier since 1961, it does not have the full range of capabilities to meet this condition. In response, Pakistan requires, at a minimum, green-water capabilities. In other words, it needs to be able to operate in the open oceans of its surrounding region to counter the Indian naval threat.

From a nuclear strategy perspective, the most credible second-strike capability rests on a ship submersible ballistic nuclear (SSBN) platform. That’s where the navy comes back into the picture again. So far, while Pakistan has developed the capability to put nuclear-armed cruise missiles on conventional subs, the country does not have an SSBN platform.