The Pakistan Navy is set to bring its first Chinese-designed submarine into active service next year, Admiral Naveed Ashraf told Chinese state media, marking a significant boost to Islamabad’s naval capabilities and Beijing’s regional influence. The $5 billion deal calls for eight Hangor-class submarines to be delivered by 2028, with the first four built in China and the remainder assembled in Pakistan to enhance local technical expertise, Ashraf said in an interview with the Global Times published Sunday.
“The submarines will strengthen our ability to patrol the North Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean,” Ashraf noted, highlighting the strategic role of the new vessels in countering India and projecting power toward the Middle East. The announcement follows a high-profile incident in May, when Pakistan used Chinese-made J-10 fighter jets to down an Indian Air Force Rafale aircraft, raising questions about the competitiveness of Western versus Chinese military hardware.
Three of the submarines have already been launched in China’s Yangtze River shipyard in Hubei province. “Chinese-origin platforms and equipment have been reliable, technologically advanced, and well-suited to Pakistan Navy’s operational requirements,” Ashraf told the tabloid, which is published by the ruling Communist Party’s People’s Daily. He also emphasized that the Pakistan Navy is exploring emerging technologies, including unmanned systems, artificial intelligence, and advanced electronic warfare, in collaboration with China.
Islamabad has long been one of Beijing’s largest arms customers, accounting for over 60% of China’s weapons exports between 2020 and 2024, according to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. Beyond arms sales, China has invested heavily in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a 3,000-kilometer infrastructure project linking Xinjiang to Pakistan’s deep-water port of Gwadar. The corridor aims to secure China’s energy supply routes from the Middle East while extending Beijing’s influence toward Afghanistan, Iran, and Central Asia, effectively encircling India.
India currently operates three indigenously developed nuclear-powered submarines alongside diesel-electric attack submarines acquired over decades from France, Germany, and Russia. In contrast, Ashraf described Pakistan’s cooperation with China as encompassing not only hardware but also “a shared strategic outlook, mutual trust, and a long-standing partnership.” He added that in the coming decade, the relationship is expected to grow, covering shipbuilding, training, enhanced interoperability, research, technology sharing, and industrial collaboration.
The commissioning of the first Hangor-class submarine underscores Pakistan’s growing naval capabilities and reflects Beijing’s expanding strategic footprint in South Asia and the wider Indian Ocean region.
