Debt-laden Pakistan spikes defence budget by 20%

Time of India

10-06-2025

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Pakistan increased its defence outlay by 20% in the annual budget presented on Tuesday, even as the debt-laden country earmarked nearly half of the funds for interest payments.It comes close on the heels of significant damage to the country's airbases and air defence systems in the strikes carried out by India as part of Operation Sindoor last month.Almost 47% of the $63 billion budget will go towards servicing debt, with defence being the second biggest head with an allocation of $9.17 billion or 14.5% of the total spending.While the Shehbaz Sharif government reduced overall projected expenditure in this budget, it increased the outlay on defence substantially. Despite the increase, Pakistan's defence budget is a fraction of India's defence spending, which has been pegged at more than $77 billion for this financial year.As clearly spelled out in its economic survey report released on Monday, Pakistan is burdened with debt service payments, with China being the biggest single lender. China is also the largest supplier of weapons to Pakistan, with almost 80% of its arsenal originating from Beijing.In the recent conflict with India as well, the majority of weapons used by Pakistan, including HQ 9 surface-to-air missiles and J10 fighter jets, were acquired on lenient terms from China. Pakistan is expected to use a large part of its increased defence budget to purchase weapons from China, including replacements for destroyed air defence radars and launchers. It is also likely to incur costs to repair its airfields and other infrastructure that bore the brunt of the Indian missiles during Operation Sindoor.Last year, too, Pakistan had increased its defence budget significantly, by 16.4%, even as it was seeking a bailout deal from the International Monetary Fund to avert an economic collapse.New Delhi: Pakistan increased its defence outlay by 20% in the annual budget presented on Tuesday, even as the debt-laden country earmarked nearly half of the funds for interest payments.It comes close on the heels of significant damage to the country's airbases and air defence systems in the strikes carried out by India as part of Operation Sindoor last month.Almost 47% of the $63 billion budget will go towards servicing debt, with defence being the second biggest head with an allocation of $9.17 billion or 14.5% of the total spending.While the Shehbaz Sharif government reduced overall projected expenditure in this budget, it increased the outlay on defence substantially. Despite the increase, Pakistan's defence budget is a fraction of India's defence spending, which has been pegged at more than $77 billion for this financial year.As clearly spelled out in its economic survey report released on Monday, Pakistan is burdened with debt service payments, with China being the biggest single lender. China is also the largest supplier of weapons to Pakistan, with almost 80% of its arsenal originating from Beijing.In the recent conflict with India as well, the majority of weapons used by Pakistan, including HQ 9 surface-to-air missiles and J10 fighter jets, were acquired on lenient terms from China. Pakistan is expected to use a large part of its increased defence budget to purchase weapons from China, including replacements for destroyed air defence radars and launchers. It is also likely to incur costs to repair its airfields and other infrastructure that bore the brunt of the Indian missiles during Operation Sindoor.Last year, too, Pakistan had increased its defence budget significantly, by 16.4%, even as it was seeking a bailout deal from the International Monetary Fund to avert an economic collapse.