China accelerates delivery of Hangor-class submarines to Pakistan, expanding PLA influence and threatening Indian naval dominance across the Arabian Sea.
Pakistan’s naval ambitions are diving deep beneath the surface—literally. In an exclusive revelation to China’s Global Times, Admiral Naveed Ashraf, Chief of Naval Staff of the Pakistan Navy, confirmed that the first Hangor-class submarine, jointly developed with China, will enter active service in 2026.
This marks a dangerous escalation in the China-Pakistan maritime axis, one that analysts warn could dramatically alter the security equilibrium of the Indian Ocean region, where Israel, India, and allied democracies safeguard vital global trade routes.
Under a 2015 defense deal, Pakistan contracted eight Hangor-class submarines from China—four to be built at Chinese shipyards and four locally assembled at Karachi Shipyard & Engineering Works. The first submarine was launched in April 2024, followed by two more this year. The full fleet is expected to be completed by 2028, giving Pakistan an unprecedented undersea strike capability.
Ashraf called the project “a milestone in naval collaboration,” lauding China for “transfer of technology and skills.” He hailed the deal as proof of “Pakistan’s self-reliance”—a claim experts view as overstated, given that the vessels are Chinese-designed and rely heavily on Beijing’s military logistics and electronic warfare systems.
Beyond submarines, China has already delivered four Type 054A/P multirole frigates—ships capable of anti-air, anti-submarine, and electronic warfare—placing Pakistan’s Navy firmly under Beijing’s technological and strategic umbrella. Ashraf openly praised Chinese hardware, saying the platforms “have been reliable, advanced, and perfectly suited to our needs.”
Yet regional observers are sounding the alarm. The Hangor-class—reportedly modeled after China’s Type 039A Yuan-class—can deploy torpedoes, cruise missiles, and potentially land-attack systems, posing a new maritime threat to India’s western coast, the Strait of Hormuz, and shipping lanes vital to Israel’s Red Sea and Mediterranean connectivity.
The Pakistan Navy claims these assets will “secure maritime routes linked to CPEC”—the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a project long criticized for dual-use military potential. Analysts warn that Beijing’s expanding naval footprint, including in Gwadar Port, could serve as a forward logistics base for PLA submarines, tightening China’s encirclement strategy across the Indo-Pacific.
Pakistan and China have intensified their joint naval drills, branded as Sea Guardians, focusing on anti-piracy, counter-terrorism, and joint combat readiness. But beneath this diplomatic façade, intelligence sources view these exercises as live rehearsals for coordinated power projection in contested waters.
Ashraf confirmed that Pakistan is pursuing cooperation in AI, unmanned maritime systems, and electronic warfare—technologies China dominates. He emphasized the partnership’s “strategic trust” and hinted at deeper future integration in naval research and surveillance.
Meanwhile, Islamabad is hosting the Pakistan International Maritime Expo and Conference (PIMEC) in Karachi this week, a platform designed to attract “blue economy” investments—but also to showcase China’s growing dominance in Pakistan’s maritime modernization.
For Israel and India, the implications are stark: an increasingly assertive Pakistan Navy, technologically and doctrinally intertwined with the PLA, threatens to tilt the balance of power in one of the world’s most critical maritime corridors.
