KARACHI, Nov 8 Pakistan Navy's operational capability has got a boost with the arrival of third Chinese-built F-22P Frigate PNS Saif, which will be formally inducted into the PN on Nov 11.

PNS Zulfikar was the first to be handed over to the PN in September 2009 that was followed by PNS Shamsheer in January this year.

Briefing newsmen on the deck of PNS Saif at the naval dockyard on Monday, Commander Pakistan Fleet Vice Admiral Tanveer Faiz said that a frigate construction project was undertaken in collaboration with China with an embedded indigenization aspect, leading to construction of three such ships in China, while the fourth and last such ship was under construction at the Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works under a technology-transfer agreement.

He said that defence cooperation between Pakistan and China was focused on improving regional peace, security and stability. Chinese cooperation in the maritime sector had significantly contributed towards strengthening maritime prosperity, he said, adding that construction of the Gwadar deep sea port was a great example of bilateral defence relations. He added that these relations were also focused on achieving self-reliance in defence production through transfer of technology.

He said that F-22P Frigate was a state-of-the-art ship, which had been specially designed to meet Pakistan Navy's requirement of fighting in multi-threat environment. It is equipped with long-range surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles, depth charges, torpedoes, latest automatic 76mm guns, Close-In-Weapon System (CIWS) sensors, electronic warfare and advance command and control system. It also has advance anti-submarine warfare capability, with state-of-the-art SONAR that can detect submarines at long ranges. The ship has a displacement of 3,000 tonnes and carries anti-submarine Z9EC helicopters.

The Commander Pakistan Fleet said that strategically located on the fringe of the world sea-borne trade route, Pakistan was not engaged in arms with any country but was taking steps to protect its security and economic interests. He said that 66 per cent of the world's oil trade passed through the region close to Gwadar and Jiwani which was significant in the context of growing energy needs of the world in the future.

He said that 97 per cent of Pakistan's trade was by sea therefore maintaining peace and stability was vital for the PN. He also referred to the vulnerability of the Mekran Coast due to proximity with Afghanistan and the route through Balochistan. Therefore, he said that for maintaining stability in the north Arabian Sea, Pakistan Navy's role is very significant. In this context, he recalled the role of Pakistan in the Coalition Task Force 150 in curbing terrorism at sea, illegal trafficking and other such crime.

He said it was in view of Pakistan's track record that the country would be taking over the command of the Coalition Task Force 150, operating in the Gulf of Aden, in December.

Responding to a question about a recent statement of the chief of the naval staff about re-visiting the agreement for the operation of the Gwadar port, he said that agreement with the Port of Singapore Authority was awarded concessionary contract so that the Gwadar port would be efficiently operated. But unfortunately the PSA failed to attract even a single ship to the port and the ships that anchored at Gwadar were in fact brought in by the government of Pakistan, he added.

He said that since the Singaporean entity had failed to fulfil its obligation and the government could not meet the objectives of creating more jobs for its people and giving a boost to the country's economy, the chief of the naval staff had proposed to the Ministry of Defence to revisit the agreement, he added.

When his claims about capability of the force was questioned on the basis of a report that the PN had to seek US Navy's help to recover a “valuable asset” from the depth of about 200 feet near Karachi, he said that “Pakistan Navy's deep diving capability is robust and we don't need anybody's help for such jobs. There was no loss of any asset and it was one of that exercises that we engage in many times.”

It is worth recalling here that confusion was created when the American embassy in Islamabad issued a press release and an officer of Pakistan Navy talked about the recovery of such an asset from the sea.

Earlier, Captain Mohammad Zubair Shafiq, who brought the ship after extensive trials at sea, said that the addition of F-22P ship would not only strengthen the potential of Pakistan Navy but also contribute towards enhancing country's ship building capabilities.

He said that the ship was handed over to Pakistan Navy in September and it visited Brunei, Bangkok, Jakarta and the Maldives on way to Pakistan.

He also said that negotiations with the Chinese authorities were under way for the construction of two more missile attack craft.