Pakistan Army is very strong: Malaysian PM

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on Wednesday praised the Pakistan Army and Pakistan Air Force’s fighter jet JF-17 Thunder.

During an interview following his visit to Pakistan, the Malaysian premier said, "I know how strong the Pakistan Army is. If you fight against them, you will get a bloody nose.”

Regarding the JF-17 Thunders, the Malaysian prime minister who was the chief guest at the Pakistan Day parade said, "They [Pakistan] have been able to build aircraft now which were demonstrated. They performed very well."

"I knew Pakistan will like to sell its planes to us, so we said to give us one or two planes so we can see how strong they are," he added.

Mahathir Mohamad was given a briefing on JF-17 Thunder fighter jets at the Nur Khan Airbase ahead of his departure from the country as his three-day trip concluded on March 23.

Malaysia has shown keen interest in procuring JF-17 Thunder fighter planes and anti-tank missiles from Pakistan.