Following a change in the US defence company’s contract that added Pakistan to the list of buyers, Raytheon has announced that it would sell Islamabad Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM) by 2030.
F-16 Falcons used by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) are also equipped with these missiles.
Raytheon was awarded a $41.6 million firm-fixed-price amendment to an earlier contract for the production of the upgraded AMRAAM’s C8 and D3 variants, according to a press release issued on September 30 about the contracts the US Department of War granted for the US Air Force.
The contract said added that the alteration raised the total cumulative face value of the contract to $2.5 billion from $2.47bn.
“Work will be performed at Tucson, Arizona, and is expected to be completed by May 30, 2030. This contract involves foreign military sales to United Kingdom, Poland, Pakistan, Germany, Finland, Australia, Romania, Qatar, Oman, Korea, Greece, Switzerland, Portugal, Singapore, Netherlands, Czech Republic, Japan, Slovakia, Denmark, Canada, Belgium, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Italy, Norway, Spain, Kuwait, Finland, Sweden, Taiwan, Lithuania, Isreal, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Turkey,” the press releas said.
Pakistan was not included in the buyers list for the AMRAAM missile in the May 7 contract.
In the country’s largest international order for the weapon at that time, Islamabad had purchased 700 AMRAAM in January 2007.
Saudi business delegation lands in Pakistan: A high-level business delegation from Saudi Arabia has arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday for an official visit aimed at strengthening bilateral economic cooperation, the Foreign Office said.
According to the statement, Prince Mansour bin Mohammad Al Saud, Chairman of the Saudi-Pakistan Joint Business Council, is heading the high-level business delegation.
During their stay, Prince Mansour and the accompanying delegation “will hold meetings with Pakistan’s leadership, senior government officials, chambers of commerce, and leading business groups to explore new avenues for enhanced trade and investment collaboration between the two brotherly countries.”
It added that the visit underscored the deep-rooted and brotherly ties between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, reflecting their shared commitment to expanding economic and investment partnerships under the framework of the Saudi-Pakistan Joint Business Council.
“Discussions during the visit are expected to focus on trade and investment facilitation, with special emphasis on collaboration across priority sectors aligned with Saudi Vision 2030 and Pakistan’s economic growth agenda,” it added.