Pakistan, Libya sign $4 billion arms deal.
Pakistan has secured a deal worth more than $4 billion to sell military equipment to the Libyan National Army (LNA) despite a United Nations arms embargo on the North African country, four Pakistani officials said on Monday.
The deal, one of Pakistan’s largest ever arms sales, was finalized after a meeting between Pakistan Army Chief Asim Munir and Saddam Khalifa Haftar, commander of eastern Libya’s military, in the city of Benghazi, the officials said.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry, defence ministry, and military did not respond to requests for comment.
Given Libya’s long-standing instability since the 2011 uprising that toppled Muammar Gaddafi and divided the country between rival leaders, any arms deal with the LNA is likely to be subject to scrutiny.
A version of the deal, seen by Reuters before it was finalized, includes the purchase of 16 JF-17 fighters, a multirole combat aircraft jointly developed by Pakistan and China, and 12 Super Mushak trainers used for basic pilot training.
A Pakistani official confirmed the authenticity of the list, while another Islamabad official said the weapons on the list were all part of the deal.
Another Pakistani official stated that the deal included the sale of land, sea, and air equipment over a period of 2.5 years and could potentially include JF-17 fighter jets. Two of the officials said the deal was worth more than $4 billion, while two others put the figure at $4.6 billion.
The Libyan National Army’s official media channel reported on Sunday that the group had entered into a defense cooperation pact with Pakistan that includes arms sales, joint training, and military production, but did not provide details.
“We are announcing the beginning of a new phase of strategic military cooperation with Pakistan,” Haftar said in remarks broadcast on Al-Hadath TV on Sunday.
Benghazi officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The UN-recognized Government of National Accord, led by Prime Minister Abdel Hamid Dabiq, controls much of western Libya, while Haftar’s Libyan National Army controls the east and south, including major oil fields, and does not recognize the Western-backed government.