TDS Desk:

The Bangladesh government is interested to purchase J-10C fighter jets manufactured in China for the modernisation of the Bangladesh Air Force. Interim government chief adviser professor Muhammad Yunus brought up this issue during his meeting with China president Xi Jinping last March.

Two members of the entourage that accompanied the chief adviser during his China visit confirmed Journalist about Bangladesh’s interest to purchase fighter jets from China.

Earlier, on 26 March, the chief adviser went to China on a 4-day official visit. The chief adviser’s press wing said at the time that the two leaders discussed various issues, including Chinese aid in the Teesta project, purchase of multiple combat aircraft, multilateral connection between the ports of Bangladesh and Kunming, China.

As part of the modernisation of the three armed forces to prepare them for future challenges, Bangladesh wants to purchase J-10C fighter jets.

Wishing to be unnamed two representatives at the policymaking level of the government told journalist “At a meeting in Beijing, the chief adviser raised the government’s plan for the modernisation of the Bangladesh Air Force. He expressed interest in purchasing 12 J-10C fighter jets from China, to which the Chinese president responded positively.”

Asked about this, adviser to the foreign ministry Touhid Hossain told Journalist that the chief adviser discussed purchasing fighter jets during his meeting with the Chinese president.

Diplomatic sources said preliminary discussions between Bangladesh and China on the purchase of J-10C fighter jets had already begun at the official level before the chief adviser’s visit.

The matter was raised during the meeting in Beijing, paving the way for the purchase to be implemented. Talks between the two countries on the issue have been continuing since the visit.

THE J-10C FIGHTER JET

According to information from various defence-related websites, China’s J-10C fighter jet is also known as the Vigorous Dragon. It is a multirole combat aircraft (MRCA) belonging to the fourth generation, with the capability of carrying out multidimensional operations.

The J-10C can fly at supersonic speeds (faster than the speed of sound) and is highly effective in detecting enemy fighter jets. It has both air-to-air and air-to-ground attack capabilities and can strike targets up to 200 kilometres away.

The aircraft can also operate in coordination with other fighter jets and drones. In terms of technology, speed, stealth, and surveillance, the J-10C is capable of executing precision attacks while evading enemy detection.

Earlier-generation fighter jets had separate roles such as surveillance, bombing from the air, or engaging in dogfights with other fighters.

In contrast, a multirole combat aircraft can carry out a wide range of missions such as striking enemy ground bases, tanks, artillery, and infrastructure from the air; conducting surveillance and intelligence gathering; attacking warships at sea; and targeting enemy radar and communication systems to disable them. In short, a single fighter jet is capable of multidimensional operations.

After the terrorist attack in Kashmir, in May this year Pakistan claimed that the technological and military capabilities of China’s J-10C were proven. Islamabad said that for the first time, the Chengdu J-10 or J-10C was deployed in direct combat. Pakistan also claimed that with the Chengdu J-10, it had downed a French-made Dassault Rafale fighter jet.

DEFENCE CAPABILITY AND GEOPOLITICS

Since the fall of the Awami League government in the face of the July uprising, Bangladesh’s relations with both the United States and China have grown visibly closer, with both countries showing interest to deepen ties at various levels with the interim government led by Professor Yunus.

However, against the backdrop of geopolitics, Washington has been keeping a sharp eye on China’s presence in Bangladesh, as it does in other regions of the world. As a result, the China issue has come up in different rounds of discussions between Dhaka and Washington.

Across administrations of both the Democratic and Republican parties, the White House has remained curious about Bangladesh’s growing intimacy with China.

Senior US officials have indicated to Dhaka that they have no objection if Bangladesh expands cooperation with China in trade and other areas. But a deepening of defence or military cooperation with Beijing is viewed as unsettling for Washington.

Asked about the plan to purchase J-10C fighter aircraft from China, retired Major General ANM Muniruzzaman, president of the Bangladesh Institute of Peace and Security Studies (BIPSS), told Journalist that the aircraft’s success in the short India-Pakistan conflict in May had proven its technological capabilities.

This purchase, he said, would significantly enhance Bangladesh’s defence capacity. On the other hand, it could also create challenges in the realm of international relations.

He further said Bangladesh should proceed with caution in this procurement, keeping in mind the geopolitical equations involving China, the United States and several Western countries.

In particular, President Trump’s trade war has already demonstrated that the issue goes beyond commerce alone. Therefore, it is prudent to consider whether the purchase of J-10C aircraft from China could put Bangladesh’s relations with the Western world at risk.