Washington: The US will supply AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM) to Pakistan, in what is being called a fresh phase phase in defence cooperation between the two countries. This announcement was made by the US Department of War (DoW) in an official statement.
Indian defence sources have said that they are not too concerned about the development as the Indian Air Force has necessary counter measures in place and more are being developed.
Pakistan has been listed among the countries that would be buying the missile system made by Raytheon, it was confirmed. The company received an additional USD 41.6 million on a previously awarded contract (FA8675-23-C-0037) for the production of the AMRAAM’s C8 and D3 variants, raising the total contract value to more than USD 2.51 billion, the DoW said.
The statement dies not mention how many missiles Pakistan will receive. The other countries in the list include the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, Japan, and Saudi Arabia. Work under the agreement is scheduled for completion by May 2030.
The AMRAAM is compatible only with the F-16s operated by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) and was reportedly used in 2019 to down an Indian Air Force MiG-21 flown by Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman. The inclusion of Pakistan in the AMRAAM programme has triggered speculation about further upgrades to the PAF’s F-16 fleet.
Defence publication Quwa has said that the AIM-120C8 — part of the new order — is the export version of the AIM-120D, the most advanced AMRAAM currently in US service. Pakistan currently operates the older C5 variant, around 500 of which were acquired with its Block 52 F-16s in 2010.
This announcement follows an improvement in ties between the US and Pakistan. US president Donald Trump had met Pakistani prime minister Shehbaz Sharif and his Army chief Asim Munir recently.