Pakistan pushes for JF-17 sale to Sri Lanka

இரண்டாம் செய்தி:
No Decision On JF-17 Fighter Jets
by  Camelia Nathaniel

The Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) claims that no decision has been made regarding the purchase of aircraft for the SLAF yet, despite reports that  Pakistan is expected to be pushing hard for a follow-up agreement with Sri Lanka on the purchase of its 

JF-17 multirole fighter aircraft for the Sri Lanka Air Force.

Speaking to The Sunday Leader regarding this issue, the Air Force spokesman Group Captain Chandima Alwis said that the evaluation process is still on-going and no decision has been made regarding a decision.

“We are not interested in particular models of aircraft but we are looking at multi role aircraft that would be best suited for our purpose,” he said.

Although numerous news articles had been published regarding the SLAF’s desire to purchase the JF-17 Thunder – a third-generation fighter co-produced by Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) and China’s Chengdu Aircraft Industry Corporation 

(CAC), according to the spokesman perhaps certain interested parties are trying to push for this deal by claiming that the deal had been confirmed.

However Group Captain Alwis said that a decision will be taken for the purchase of aircraft to the SLAF as the current fleet is now old. He said that as the war has ended, there was no particular requirement for combat aircraft and there was a greater need for aircraft that could be used for multiple purposes.

Meanwhile it was also reported that Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is scheduled to visit Sri Lanka this week, and this issue is likely to be high on his agenda.

The Sunday Leader 03-01-2016



Air Platforms
Pakistan pushes for JF-17 sale to Sri Lanka

Anthony Davis, Bangkok - IHS Jane's Defence Weekly
29 December 2015

A JF-17 being demonstrated at the 2015 Paris Air Show. Pakistan is looking to sell the aircraft to Sri Lanka as well as Myanmar. 

Following the first export deal for its JF-17 multirole fighter to Myanmar, Pakistan is expected to be pushing hard for a follow-up agreement with Sri Lanka that would mark an important step in further extending its defence co-operation footprint in the Indian Ocean region.

With Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif scheduled to visit Sri Lanka in the first week of January 2016, efforts to secure an agreement in principle for the sale of the JF-17 Thunder - a third-generation fighter co-produced by Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) and China's Chengdu Aircraft Industry Corporation (CAC) - are likely to be high on his agenda, diplomatic sources have told IHS Jane's .

Sharif's upcoming talks in Colombo follow a mid-November visit to Pakistan by Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) commander Air Marshal Gagan Bulathsinhala during which the JF-17 was showcased by the Pakistanis. Immediately after the visit AM Bulathsinhala was invited to send an evaluation team of technicians and pilots to PAC's Kamra facilities near Islamabad, where the JF-17 is produced.

The SLAF - which already flies several other Chinese-made aircraft types - is currently looking to upgrade its fighter capabilities. At present these rely on the Israel Aircraft Industries Kfir, which served as the workhorse of SLAF ground attack operations in the 1983-2009 civil war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

Currently the JF-17 is flown only by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF), with the first squadron of Block 1 aircraft becoming operational in 2010. In late December 2015, PAC rolled out the 16th of a planned total of 50 Block 2 aircraft to complete the PAF's fourth JF-17 squadron in service.

Phasing out its older Dassault Mirage III/5s and Chinese F-7Ps fighters, the PAF reportedly plans to induct at least 250 JF-17s. By contrast, China's People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) does not fly the JF-17.

Note: Graphic in put ENB

What might explain the recent increase in defense spending?

அண்மைக்கால இலங்கை அரசின் பாதுகாப்பு செலவின உயர்வை எதைக் கொண்டு விளக்க முடியும்?

ஆசிய பசுபிக் பிராந்தியத்தை குறிப்பொருளாகக் கொண்டு இயங்கும் THE DIPLOMAT பத்திரிகைக்கு எழுதிய கட்டுரையில்  Ana Pararajasingham இந்தக் கேள்வியை எழுப்பியுள்ளார்.ஈழத்தமிழ் அறிவிலிகளோடு ஒப்பிடுகையில் இந்தக் கேள்வியை எழுப்பியவர் உண்மையில் அதிகார பூர்வ தொண்டூழிய அறிவு ஜீவிதான்.

இதே காரணத்தினாலேயே அவர் எழுப்பிய காலத்தின் தேவையான நியாயமான கேள்விக்கு அவர் கண்டறியும் பதில் சற்றும் காலப் பொருத்தமற்று, தர்க்கமற்று அவரது அதிகார பூர்வ தொண்டூழிய அறிவு ஜீவித் தனத்தின் வங்குரோத்து நிலையையும் அம்பலப்படுத்தி நிற்கின்றது.

1) இலங்கையில் யுத்தம் ஓய்ந்த பின்னால் பாதுகாப்பு செலவினம் ஏறத்தாழ இருமடங்கு அதிகரித்துள்ளதாகவும்,

2) படைப்பெருக்கம் பெரு முதலீடுகளில் நடை பெறுவதாகவும்,

3) உலக விவகார கொள்கை சார்ந்து இலங்கையில் ஆட்சிக்கவிழ்ப்பு நடந்ததாகவும் இவர் ஆதாரங்களின் அடிப்படையில் நிரூபித்துள்ளார், மேலும் ஒத்துக் கொண்டுமுள்ளார், நன்றி!

ஆனால் இந்த அறிவு ஜீவி இலங்கையின் தற்காலப் படைப்பெருக்கம் இந்தியாவுக்கு எதிரான இலங்கையின் இராணுவ அணிவகுப்பு என அறுதியிட்டுக் கூறுகின்றார்.

இந்த அறியாமையை-திட்டமிட்ட புரட்டலை- திருத்திச் சொல்ல நாம் கடமைப்பட்டுள்ளோம்.

இந்த இலங்கையின் படைப்பெருக்கம் மூன்றாவது உலக மறுபங்கீட்டு போர்க்காலகட்டத்தில் `அமெரிக்க இந்திய முகாமின்` இராணுவக் காலனியாக இலங்கையைக் கட்டியெழுப்பும் ரணில் மைத்திரி பாசிசத்தின் பகிரங்க முயற்சியாகும் என புதிய ஈழப் புரட்சியாளர்களாகிய  நாம் பிரகடனம் செய்கின்றோம்!

======================================================================

Colombo’s Military Build-Up: A Strategy of Deterrence

What might explain the recent increase in defense spending?

By Ana Pararajasingham
December 30, 2015

Contrary to expectations that with the end of the civil war, Sri Lanka would reduce its spending on defense, Colombo has in fact increased its defense expenditure. Defense spending in 2009, the year the civil war ended with the comprehensive defeat of the Tamil Tigers, was Rs 175 billion ($1.2 billion). By 2011, this had risen to Rs 194 billion, and in 2013 it was Rs 235 billion. In late 2015, Colombo was looking to procure 18 to 24 new fighter aircraft to replace its obsolete fleet of MIG-21s by 2017. The budget allocation for defense in 2016 is Rs 307 billion.

Colombo’s 2009 victory over the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was achieved with heavy civilian casualties. Tens of thousands were killed and maimed. There was a purpose, to convince the survivors of the heavy price of war and remove the risk of any future uprising. Colombo was successful and knows it. Not only have thousands of Tamil Tiger soldiers been killed, but many thousands of former fighters and other young men and women have fled the country in fear of their lives Thousands of others are believed to be in government custody. Another uprising is highly unlikely.

Why then should Colombo spend a significant proportion of its GDP on defense, funds that could otherwise be spent on restoring the country’s war-ravaged economy? What exactly is the rationale for this exponential increase in defense spending?

If internal threats are non-existent, the threat must be external. From Colombo’s perspective, the major threat has always been its giant neighbour, India. It is a fear that has plagued Colombo since the late 1940s when Sri Lanka was about to be granted independence following Britain’s decision to relinquish India, the Jewel in the Crown. In 1947, Sri Lanka’s first Prime Minister, D. S. Senanayake, based the strategy of his country’s security on the assumption that the most likely threat to its independence would come from India. The British saw in these perceived fears a strategic advantage, linking the granting of independence to the island under a unitary constitution that gave the Sinhala majority enormous political power, while defense agreements gave Britain the use of naval and air bases in Trincomalee. The base in Trincomalee was of strategic significance to Britain, especially for securing links to Australia and New Zealand. D. S. Senanayake considered the unitary constitution as a safeguard against the Tamils federating with India, just as Ulster separated from the Irish Republic to federate with Britain, another of his fears and one that he shared with Lord Soulbury, the head of the commission appointed by the British to draft a constitution for the island.

Until the early 1980s, New Delhi sought to allay Sri Lanka’s fears through displays of generosity in bilateral relations. These included accepting in 1964 over half a million Tamils of Indian origin who had been disenfranchised by the Sri Lankan government in 1948; maintaining a cordial relationship with Sri Lanka despite the latter’s pro-Pakistan position during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971; and conceding the disputed island of Kachatheevu to Sri Lanka in 1974.

By the early 1980s, however, India’s actions appeared to justify Sri Lanka’s suspicions when it armed and trained Tamil militants to exert pressure on Sri Lanka, which was showing clear signs of moving into the Western camp. These suspicions were only reinforced when India intervened directly in 1987 under the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord to deny the use of the Trincomalee Harbour to the U.S. and the setting up of a Voice of America broadcasting facility in Sri Lanka.

Although India provided Colombo with training and logistical support during Colombo’s final assault on the Tamil Tigers, this did not allay Colombo’s reservations about India. Colombo knows that New Delhi’s assistance to defeat the Tamil Tigers was to eliminate the organization that had assassinated Rajiv Gandhi, and was being made at the behest of Rajiv’s widow Sonia, who pledged full military support to Sri Lanka to achieve that goal.

Although Colombo’s war efforts had the support of New Delhi, it balanced that relationship by maintaining strong relationships with China and Pakistan. Without the help of the Chinese, who, in addition to their military aid, gave the Sri Lankan government diplomatic cover at the UN Security Council, Colombo could not have won the long-running civil war. Subsequently, when Colombo’s relationship with China grew stronger under President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Washington and New Delhi played a crucial role in bringing about a new government in Colombo. Sri Lanka’s new leader is decidedly pro-Western, but like all its predecessors, the new government has its reservations about New Delhi. A Crisis Group report in 2011 noted that with the LTTE gone, New Delhi’s capacity to influence Sri Lankan policy has been greatly reduced. Yet still Colombo mistrusts New Delhi. To many Sinhalese, India’s overt intervention in 1987, citing the plight of Tamils was a humiliating affair. At that time Sri Lanka’s armed forces were a fraction of their current strength, and were barely capable of dealing with the Tamil insurgency underway.

And so the victory over its internal foe, achieved with Chinese assistance, has provided Colombo with an opportunity to build up its forces as a deterrent against any future actions by what many Sinhalese perceive to be their external foe: India.

Ana Pararajasingham was Director-Programmes with the Centre for Just Peace and Democracy (CJPD) and is the author “Sri Lanka’s Endan gered Peace Process and the Way Forward” (2007).

 The Joint Fighter-17 (JF-17) Thunder multi-role fighter was jointly developed by China and Pakistan. Development started in 1999. Most of the development was carried out in China by Chengdu, however development costs were split equally. It was reported that Russian Mikoyan design bureau provided some assistance in development of this aircraft. Aircraft made its maiden flight in 2003. Its official Chinese designation is the Fighter China-1 or FC-1 Xiaolong (Fiece Dragon). First 8 Chinese-built fighters were delivered to Pakistan in 2007 - 2008. In 2009 an order was signed for a further 42 fighters. These were license-produced locally by Pakistan Aeronautical Complex. By 2015 Pakistan Air Force operates 60 of these aircraft and production continues. It is estimated that total requirement of the Pakistani Air Force is for 250 new fighters. Currently Pakistan Air Force also operate a number of ageing A-5C, F-7P, Mirage 3 and Mirage 5 that a due to be replaced. This multi-role aircraft is also proposed for developing countries as a low-cost replacement for their ageing types. Recently Azerbaijan ordered 26 of these multi-role fighters.

    It is worth mentioning that the FC-1 traces its origins to the Super-7 programme. It was a joint Chengdu-Grumman development project to upgrade the Chinese J-7 fighter. This programme was cancelled in 1990. China continued the Super-7 project and renamed the design as the FC-1.

   The JF-17 Thunder has a conventional aerodynamic layout. Aircraft is fitted with Russian Klimov RD-93 turbofan engine with afterburner. It is a derivative of the RD-33, used on the MiG-29. In 2007 a contract was signed to supply 150 RD-93 engines for the JF-17, exported to Pakistan. China is also developing an indigenous turbofan engine, which is a copy of the RD-93, but has some modifications. It is designated as the WS-13 (Tianshan-21).

     The Thunder multi-role fighters delivered to Pakistan are fitted with Italian Grifo S-7 multi-track, multi-mode pulse Doppler radar. It has look-down, shoot-down capability. Other radars can be fitted. Some sources claim, that aircraft are fitted with the Russian radars. Avionics systems will be gradually upgraded in later batches.

   This aircraft is intended for air defense and ground attack missions. It is armed with a single 23-mm GSh-23 or 30-mm GSh-30 twin-barrel cannon. Maximum weapon payload is about 3.7 t. There are five hardpoints and two wingtips for missiles and fuel tanks. The JF-17 has beyond visual range attack capability. Its primary weapon are Chinese PL-12/SD-10 medium-range air-to-air missiles with active radar-homing. Aircraft also carries short-range Chinese PL-7, PL-8, PL-9 or US AIM-9P, mounted on wingtip rails. The JF-17 multi-role fighter can also carry general purpose of laser-guided bombs. Aircraft has no in-flight refueling capability.

   In 2013 Pakistan began production of improved JF-17 Thunder (Block 2). It has improved countermeasures systems, in-flight refueling capability. Also this fighter aircraft can use more different weapons.

ENB-TENN:தமிழீழச் செய்தியகம்: பஞ்சாப்பில் ``பயங்கரம்``

ENB-TENN:தமிழீழச் செய்தியகம்: பஞ்சாப்பில் ``பயங்கரம்``: Terror Attack At Air Force Base in Punjab's Pathankot, 2 Terrorists Killed All India | Edited by Nonika Marwaha | Updated: January 0...

பஞ்சாப்பில் ``பயங்கரம்``

Terror Attack At Air Force Base in Punjab's Pathankot, 2 Terrorists Killed
All India | Edited by Nonika Marwaha | Updated: January 02, 2016 07:25 IST


Terror Attack At Air Force Base in Punjab's Pathankot, 2 Terrorists Killed
The gunfire started at around 3:30 am and an official car was used to launch the attack.

PATHANKOT:  At least four terrorists launched an attack on the Indian Air Force base in Punjab's Pathankot on Saturday morning, authorities said. Two of the terrorists have been killed.

The gunfire started at around 3:30 am, authorities said, adding that an official car was used to launch the attack. The incident is being seen as connected to the hijacking of a police car a day ago.

Gunfire is being heard from inside the air base and reports suggest the terrorists have been contained in a non-operational area of the facility.

The technical area where MiG 29 fighter aircraft and helicopters are kept is safe, officials said.

The National Security Guard or the NSG has been called in, authorities said. Helicopters have also dispatched to the area for assistance in operation.

According to official sources, intelligence inputs had alerted security forces of a possible terror attack late yesterday following which the security had been increased in the area.

The strike is being suspected to have been launched by the terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed who wanted to damage military assets in the area officials said.

The attack comes within six months of the Gurdaspur terrorist strike where three terrorists equipped with grenades and AK-47s, opened fire in Dinanagar killing three civilians.

The terrorists were shot dead after a 12-hour long gun battle with the security forces in which four policemen were also killed. Story First Published: January 02, 2016 06:03 IST

ENB புரட்சிகர புதிய வருட வாழ்த்துகள்!

அன்பார்ந்த தமிழீழ மக்களே, ENB வாசகர்களே,தோழர்களே, புதிய தலை முறைக் குழந்தைகளே;

நாட்காட்டி வழிப்பட்ட புதிய 2016 பிறந்துவிட்டது, தங்கள் அனைவருக்கும் எமது புரட்சிகர புதிய வருட வாழ்த்துகள்.

2016 ஆம் ஆண்டின் உலகப் பொருளாதாரம் பற்றி பல அறிக்கைகள் ஏற்கெனவே வெளியாகிவிட்டன.சிலவற்றை மட்டுமே கற்க முடிந்துள்ளது.எனினும் அவை 2016 இன் உலகப் பொருளாதாரம் 2015 இலிருந்து எவ்வகையிலும் மேலானதாக இரா என கட்டியம் கூறுகின்றன.சீனப் பொருளாதார வளர்ச்சியின் இறங்கு நிலையை காரணமாகக் கூறுகின்றன! ஆக இந்த நாட்காட்டி ஆய்வே மேம்பாட்டுக்கான அறிகுறிகளைக் காட்டவில்லை!

ஆனால் மிகை உற்பத்திக்கும் வாங்கும் சக்தி இழப்புக்கும் இடையான அடிப்படையான ஏகாதிபத்திய உலகமய பொருளுற்பத்தி முறையின் நெருக்கடியை இந்த நாட்காட்டி ஆய்வுகள் மூடி மறைக்கின்றன.

மேலும் இந்த நெருக்கடிக்கு தீர்வு காண, காலத்துக்கு காலம், நேரத்துக்கு நேரம்,ஆண்டுக்கு ஆண்டு, ஆட்சிக்கு ஆட்சி, தலைவருக்கு தலைவர் வெவ்வேறு காரணங்களைக் கற்பித்தாலும், இவை அத்தனையையும் ஒரே நேர்கோட்டில் நிறுத்தும், மூன்றாவது உலக மறு பங்கீட்டுப் போரில் குதித்துள்ளார்கள் என்பதையும் மூடி மறைக்கின்றன.

ஆக உலக மறுபங்கீடே இன்றைய உலகை ஆளும் மெய்யான விதியாகும்.

இலங்கையில் இது 2015 ஜனவரி 8 ஆட்சிக்கவிழ்ப்பின் மூலம் அரசியல் அதிகாரத்தைக் கைப்பற்றியது.இது `அமைதிப் புரட்சி` என்று அழைக்கப்படுகின்றது.

இவ்வாறு இலங்கையில் ரணில் மைத்திரி பொம்மை ஆட்சியை நிறுவியதன் மூலம், உலக மறுபங்கீட்டின் அமெரிக்க இந்திய முகாமின் இராணுவக் காலனியாக இலங்கையை மாற்றிவிட்டனர் சிவில் சொசயைட்டிகள்..!

ரணில் மைத்திரி பாசிஸ்டுக்கள் நல்லாட்சி என்கிற பெயர் சூட்டி இந்த இராணுவக் காலனியைக் கட்டியமைத்து வருகின்றனர்.

படைப் பெருக்கம் வேறெந்த வகையிலும் நியாயம் செய்ய இயலாத அளவுக்கு தொடர்ந்து பெருகி வருகின்றது.

இராணுவச் செலவினம் சமாதான காலத்தில் ஏறத்தாழ இரு மடங்காக அதிகரித்து வருகின்றது.

இவ்வாறு உள்நாட்டு யுத்தம் ஓய்ந்ததன் விளைவான சேமிப்புகளை, அமெரிக்க இந்திய முகாமின் உலக மறுபங்கீட்டு யுத்தத்துக்கு சேவகம் செய்யும் இராணுவக் காலனியாக இலங்கையை மாற்றுவதில் முதலீடு செய்கின்றது ரணில் மைத்திரிப் பாசிச இனப்படுகொலைச் சிங்களம்.

இதற்கு மேல் இந்த ஆட்சிக்கவிழ்ப்பு அரங்கேற்றிய நல்லாட்சி அரசாங்கத்துக்கு சொந்த நாட்டு மக்கள் குறித்தோ, தேசியக் கடமைகள் குறித்தோ கிஞ்சிற்றும் கவலை கிடையாது.

ஒற்றையாட்சி சிங்களம் இந்த ஏகாதிபத்திய இந்திய விரிவாதிக்க சேவகத்துக்கு ஈழத்தையும் இழுத்துச் செல்கின்றது.

ஈழ - புலம்பெயர், ஏகாதிபத்திய தாச சமரசவாத கும்பல்கள் -( கட்சி ஸ்தானபங்கள், ஊடகங்கள்) இதற்கு துணைபோகின்றன.

புதிய ஈழப்புரட்சியாளர்களாகிய நாம் இப்புதிய ஆண்டில் பின்வரும் கடமைகளை நிறைவேற்ற ஓரணி திரளுமாறு அறை கூவல் விடுக்கின்றோம்.

* ஏகாதிபத்திய மிகை உற்பத்தி நெருக்கடியை, உலக மறு பங்கீட்டு போராக மாற்றுவதை எதிர்ப்போம்! 

* உலக மறு பங்கீட்டு போருக்கு இலங்கையை இராணுவக் காலனியாக்கும் ரணில் மைத்திரி பாசிச அரசை தூக்கியெறிவோம்!

 * ஈழ தேசிய சுய நிர்ணய உரிமையை அங்கீகரித்த சிறீலங்கா-தமிழீழ, ஏகாதிபத்திய இந்திய விரிவாதிக்க எதிர்ப்பு தேசிய சுதந்திர  உழைக்கும் மக்கள் ஐக்கிய முன்னணியைக் கட்டியமைப்போம்!

இனிய 2016 புரட்சிகர புதிய வருட வாழ்த்துகள்! 

புதிய ஈழப்புரட்சியாளர்கள்.