SARGODHA, Sept 7: China and Pakistan have decided to substantially enhance their military cooperation in all the fields, says Air Chief Marshal Mushaf Ali Mir.

“The government-to-government go-ahead has been given to undertake extensive military cooperation between our two countries,” he stated.

Briefing reporters at Sargodha Air Base on Saturday, he rejected assertions that China was under pressure from the United States or western countries “not” to have defence cooperation with Pakistan.

“There is no pressure on cooperation in conventional defence matters and China is providing most modern aircraft to us,” the air chief said.

The United States has been accusing China of supplying nuclear-capable missiles to Pakistan, but both Beijing and Islamabad deny the allegation.

Talking about US-Pakistan relations, he said that during President Gen Pervez Musharraf’s visit to America, issues concerning conventional military imbalance in the region will also be discussed.

Pakistan, he said, was looking for purchasing different kinds of arms from the United States, including F-16 aircraft and their spare parts. He was of the opinion that the revival of defence consultative group between the two countries would lead to their new defence cooperation. “If you have good political relations with the United States, it means things can drastically improve and even various sanctions can also go,” he added.

The air chief said that in case better understanding was developed with the US government, especially during the president’s visit, Pakistan could then have the option of buying those F-16s which were currently being maintained by Turkey and Belgium. “There are 4,000 plus F-16s which are being retired from the US air force which could attract many buyers.”

He expressed the hope that the United States will soon be offering 7 additional C-130 aircraft to Pakistan.

Responding to a question, the air chief acknowledged: “At this moment, we do have a gap with India in terms of high-tech aircraft and certain technologically advanced weapons. But with the support of our nation and professional competence of our engineers and technicians, we shall not allow this gap to increase beyond acceptable limits.”

To another question, the air chief said that defence cooperation with other western countries, including France, was also being strengthened. However, he said that PAF could have been strengthened had Pakistan purchased Mirage 2000-5 from France in 1995 and 1996. He did not like to go into the details.

He did not see the possibility of nuclear war with India but said that fighting in Kashmir or in any particular sector could not be ruled out. “And this limited war will be sharp, swift and intense, but I do not see an all-out war.”

“There has not been any armed conflict between India and Pakistan for the last 9 months and it is because of the fear of the nuclear war,” he said.

He said that despite the numerical disparity, the PAF was capable of creating decisive effects in war with India. In air war, he said, although the numbers do matter, the deficiency can be addressed through high morale of the fighting force, rigorous training of the pilots, efficient maintenance of equipment, professional operational planning, courageous leadership and a will to fight hard.

“By the grace of God, the PAF proudly possesses all these intangibles, and our fleet of more than 350 fighter aircraft is a force to reckon with,” he declared.

He said that for more than a decade Pakistan had been under international sanctions during which time it faced severe economic crunch. “But these hardships did not deter us,” he said, adding that due to professional leadership and hard-working personnel, the PAF has managed to keep its aircraft in a fully operational state.

“We have lethal weapons which can be accurately delivered to cause the required destruction for supporting the offensive and defensive plans of our surface forces.”

“We have professionally trained and courageous pilots who are eagerly waiting to fight the battle in the enemy territory,” he said.

The air chief also claimed that the PAF has the will to achieve the desired results at any cost. “Rest assured, if war is thrust on us, our performance shall be more than the expectations of the nation. The PAF has proved this in previous wars also.”

He said that he would like to assure the nation that if India attempted any misadventure then all men and material assets of the PAF would be utilized in a skillful and professional manner to thwart Indian designs.

Earlier, the reporters were also briefed by Air Commodore Sabeeh Hussain and Air Commodore Faaiz Amir. The briefing covered the performance of PAF in the 1965 war and its operational readiness status in current stand-off with India. They were also taken to various PAF establishments there.