Islamabad: The second of four F-22P frigates
ordered by Pakistan from China has been commissioned at a
shipyard in Shanghai, with naval chief Admiral Nauman Bashir
saying the warships would be the "mainstay" of his force.
The frigate, named PNS Shamsheer, was commissioned
yesterday during a ceremony attended by Bashir and top
Pakistani and Chinese officials.
"PNS Shamsheer is a very potent addition to the Pakistan
Navy fleet and is to form a mainstay of the navy's surface
assets with (the other F-22P frigates)," Bashir said.
The first F-22P frigate, PNS Zulfiquar, was delivered to
the Pakistan Navy in August. The two countries signed a
contract for four frigates in 2005.
Three of the warships will be built in China while the
last one is being constructed at Karachi Shipyard under a
transfer of technology arrangement.
Bashir said that the F-22P project is "progressing
smoothly and all required objectives associated with it are
being achieved within the stipulated timeframe".
The frigates are equipped with advanced weaponry and
sensors. They also carry Z9EC helicopters.
Pakistani naval officials said the addition of these
warships will strengthen the naval fleet and contribute to
enhancing the country's shipbuilding capabilities.
Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar was earlier
scheduled to go to China for the commissioning of the second
frigate but was barred from travelling abroad after an anti-
corruption agency reopened a probe against him following the
annulment of a graft amnesty by Pakistan’s Supreme Court.
PTI
First Published: Sunday, December 20, 2009, 19:08