Pak becomes single largest buyer of Chinese weapons

A study has found that Pakistan is the largest importer of Chinese weapons and buys almost 41 percent of China's exports.

The news came as China surpassed Germany and France to become world's number three arms exporter after the United States and Russia. A Stockholm-based think-tank said that three Asian countries accounted for more than two-thirds of Chinese exports, with Pakistan taking the lead followed by Bangladesh and Myanmar, reported the Dawn.

The report was released on Monday and also showed that India topped Russia's client list, with 70 per cent of its purchases coming from Russia.

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), India was far ahead of the second and third-placed Saudi Arabia and China in the list of importers, buying about 15 percent of the total volume compared with five per cent each for the next two.

The annual report observed that the multi-billion dollar world arms trade grew by 16 percent during the period 2010 to 2014 over the previous five years.

SIPRI added that the data showed the volume of arms deliveries, not the financial value of the deals.