On Rafale acquisition, Pak says "India continues to amass military capabilities beyond its security requirement"

Islamabad: Pakistan on Thursday said it has seen reports that India has acquired Rafale jets from France which could be modified to carry nuclear weapons.

India received the first batch of five Rafale jets on Wednesday, nearly four years after it inked an inter-governmental agreement with France to procure 36 of the aircraft. The IAF received the Rafale jets 23 years after it imported Sukhoi-30 Ks from Russia in 1997.

The arrival of Rafale jets will make the IAF much stronger to deter any security challenge facing India and those seeking to threaten the country’s territorial integrity should be worried about its new capability, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Wednesday.

“We have seen reports of recent acquisition of Rafale jets by Indian Air Force,” Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Aisha Farooqui said at her weekly press briefing here.

“It is disturbing to note that India continues to amass military capabilities beyond its genuine security requirement,” she said.

“Transfer of advanced systems, where there is an open intention of conversion into nuclear delivery platforms, calls into question the commitment of international suppliers to non-proliferation commitments,” she said.

“While remaining opposed to any arms race in South Asia, Pakistan cannot remain oblivious to these developments and remains confident of its ability to thwart any ill-considered act of aggression,” she added.