Argentina Eyes Chinese JF-17 Fighters, NORINCO Armored Vehicles

Argentina has expressed interest in procuring Chinese-Pakistani JF-17 combat jets and 8x8 armored vehicles produced by Chinese arms firm NORINCO.

Argentine Ambassador to China Sabino Vaca Narvaja recently held a work meeting with the country’s Defense Minister Jorge Taiana and his team in Buenos Aires to promote cooperation with China in the field of national defense.

Fu Qianshao, a Chinese military aviation expert, told the Global Times on Wednesday that Argentina has long been seeking to procure new fighter jets to replace its aging and shrinking warplane fleet, but because of the issue of the Malvinas Islands, the UK has blocked Argentina's aircraft procurement attempts on the international market.

“China's position on the issue of the Malvinas Islands is consistent, and China firmly supports Argentina's legitimate claim to exercise full sovereignty over the Malvinas Islands,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry and the Chinese Embassy in the UK stated last year.

During the Airshow China 2022 held in Zhuhai, South China's Guangdong Province, Narvaja spoke with representatives from the China National Aero-Technology International Engineering Corp about the possibility of Argentina procuring the third-generation JF-17 aircraft jointly developed by China and the Pakistan Air Force, the embassy said in a social media post on Weibo on Tuesday.

Other defense cooperation with China includes the possible procurement of 8x8 armored vehicles from Chinese arms firm NORINCO.

The UK can lobby Western countries not to sell through diplomatic means, and it can also deter countries like South Korea and India, because their fighter jets use UK parts, including ejection seats, Fu said.

According to public information, the JF-17 has developed into three generations, often referred to as the Block 1, the Block 2 and the Block 3. 

The Block 3 is equipped with very advanced systems including an active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, a combination of China's top beyond-visual-range and short-range missiles, as well as avionics and flight control systems. The previous blocks are less costly but still perform well, analysts said.

But any deal depends on Argentina's decision, Fu said.