{"id":20162,"date":"2020-01-08T17:20:25","date_gmt":"2020-01-08T17:20:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/01\/08\/pakistan-and-china-launch-joint-naval-drills-should-india-be-concerned\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T21:51:02","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T21:51:02","slug":"pakistan-and-china-launch-joint-naval-drills-should-india-be-concerned","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/your-navy\/2020\/01\/08\/pakistan-and-china-launch-joint-naval-drills-should-india-be-concerned\/","title":{"rendered":"Pakistan and China launch joint naval drills. Should India be concerned?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">ISLAMABAD \u2014 A nine-day Sino-Pakistani naval exercise commenced in Pakistan\u2019s port of Karachi on Monday with the arrival of a Chinese naval task group from its South Sea Fleet. Sea Guardians 2020 is the sixth in the bilateral series, which, according to the Pakistan Navy, will focus on \u201caugmenting interoperability and strategic cooperation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The exercise will include a range of drills to share \u201cprofessional experiences on contemporary and non-traditional threats at sea\u201d to improve regional security cooperation, plus promote a \u201csafe and sustainable maritime environment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While stating the exercise aims to \u201cenhance the capabilities of the two navies to jointly cope with maritime terrorism and crime,\u201d China\u2019s military media branch stressed it had \u201cnothing to do with the regional situation and is not target[ing] at any third party.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This was likely an attempt to reassure India that the drills were unrelated to the tension between rivals India and Pakistan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, India will certainly have noted that Sea Guardians included warlike air defense systems, anti-missile technology, anti-submarine warfare capabilities, and live-fire and joint marine training drills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sidharth Kaushal, a research fellow specializing in sea power at the Royal United Services Institute think tank, said \u201cIndia has generally regarded Chinese exercises and naval activity in the Indian Ocean with apprehension.\u201d Consequently, New Delhi has invested in countering China\u2019s naval presence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe Indian Navy\u2019s efforts over the past decade to improve its situational awareness in the region and to upgrade the capabilities of tri-service command in Andaman and Nicobar reflects a growing consensus that the [Chinese People\u2019s Liberation Army Navy] will be a challenger in the [Indian Ocean region] in the foreseeable future,\u201d Kaushal said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>Chinese advantage<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The commander of the Pakistan Navy fleet, Vice Adm. Asif Khaliq, described the Sea Guardians series as \u201cthe basis for the two navies to test and improve their technical and tactical capabilities.\u201d China\u2019s ambassador to Pakistan, Yao Jing, also compared the exercise to the bilateral land-based Warrior exercise, and the considerably larger air-based Shaheen (Falcon) exercise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Author, analyst and former Australian defense attache to Islamabad Brian Cloughley told Defense News that China\u2019s participation in such drills is meant to strengthen the country\u2019s regional aims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cBeijing thinks long term, and having Pakistan as an ally in the Indian Ocean is a big plus in its plans to secure trade routes and increase its regional influence. The [Pakistan Navy] is an important part of its overall strategy, and it can be expected that there will be further exercises, probably developing in size and scope,\u201d Cloughley said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mansoor Ahmed, a senior fellow at the Center for International Strategic Studies in Islamabad, pointed to anti-submarine warfare, or ASW, capabilities as a focus amid Indo-Pakistani tension, given the potential for escalation involving sea-based strategic forces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIndia is hugely expanding its ASW capabilities, especially with platforms such as the P-8I and MH-60R [aircraft], which in addition to numerous bilateral and multilateral ASW exercises aimed at countering Chinese submarines specifically, will be readily applicable to countering Pakistan\u2019s future submarine forces,\u201d Ahmed said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He also highlighted India\u2019s massive numerical advantage allowing it to concentrate both surface and sub-surface force, and any future conflict will be one of attrition that may occur early in a conflict. If including loss of a Pakistani deterrent submarine, it will lower Islamabad\u2019s nuclear threshold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>What ships were in attendance?<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chinese ships participating in Sea Guardians included the Type 052D destroyer Yinchuan, the Type 054A frigate Yuncheng, a sizable contingent of special forces, replenishment vessel Weishanhu, and Type 926 submarine support ship Liugong Island.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Pakistan contributed a pair of F-22P frigates and a pair of fast-attack craft, plus special forces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Analysts consider China\u2019s latest destroyers, such as the Type 055 and Type 052D, noteworthy comparable with their Western counterpart<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"3000\" height=\"1993\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-823597532.jpg_c328db.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-44033\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-823597532.jpg_c328db.jpg 3000w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-823597532.jpg_c328db.jpg?resize=300,199 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-823597532.jpg_c328db.jpg?resize=768,510 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-823597532.jpg_c328db.jpg?resize=1024,680 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-823597532.jpg_c328db.jpg?resize=1536,1020 1536w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-823597532.jpg_c328db.jpg?resize=2048,1361 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 3000px) 100vw, 3000px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Chinese Type 054A frigate Yuncheng, left, is shown docked in Saint Petersburg, Russia. (Olga Maltseva \/AFP via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rather than build more Chinese-origin F-22Ps, Pakistan has ordered four modified Type 054A\/P frigates that are currently under construction in China. The four ships will reportedly be equipped with CM-302 supersonic anti-ship missiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Though the actual lethality of supersonic anti-ship missiles is under debate, Kaushal believes if the Type 054A\/P frigates are equipped with the CM-302, &#8220;this would improve Pakistan\u2019s capacity to achieve sea denial in wartime.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhile still operating at a naval disadvantage vis-a-vis India, as a primarily land-oriented power Pakistan needs to deny the sea in a conflict as opposed to using it per se\u201d he said. \u201cBy contrast, India needs sea command if its Navy wishes to project power from the sea and contribute to a joint campaign.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Consequently, he believes supersonic anti-ship missiles \u201cwould complicate the deployment of Indian naval forces near Pakistani shores and force them to operate from farther out, making it more difficult for the Indian Navy to replicate wartime successes such as the 1971 raid on Karachi.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAlthough I would not go so far as to say this changes the overall strategic balance between the two countries, it does enhance Pakistan\u2019s ability to achieve sea denial near its own coastline,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Though officially there was no submarine taking part in Sea Guardians, the presence of China\u2019s submarine support ship may be related to Pakistan\u2019s requirement for such a vessel. However, Pakistan Navy spokesman Rear Adm. Arshid Javed would not confirm this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Turkish firm STM hopes to interest Pakistan in a submarine rescue mothership design, following the construction of a tanker for the Pakistan Navy in Karachi.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A nine-day Sino-Pakistani naval exercise commenced in Pakistan\u2019s port of Karachi this week with the arrival of a Chinese naval task group. Find out what ships were in attendance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":44028,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":65,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[101,23,89,12,26,65],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3238],"class_list":["post-20162","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-middle-column","category-news","category-newsletters","category-your-navy"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"PAD7BOJAOBDDDFZZJIRAABBJCQ","arc_canonical_url":"\/digital-show-dailies\/surface-navy-association\/2020\/01\/08\/pakistan-and-china-launch-joint-naval-drills-should-india-be-concerned\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Pakistan and China launch joint naval drills. Should India be concerned? - Navy Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A nine-day Sino-Pakistani naval exercise commenced in Pakistan\u2019s port of Karachi this week with the arrival of a Chinese naval task group. Find out what ships were in attendance.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Pakistan and China launch joint naval drills. Should India be concerned?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A nine-day Sino-Pakistani naval exercise commenced in Pakistan\u2019s port of Karachi this week with the arrival of a Chinese naval task group. 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