Pakistan wants to repay $2bn Saudi Arabia debt with JF-17 fighter jets
January 9, 2026
In a surprise report, Reuters is reporting that Saudi Arabia is looking to acquire Pakistani JF-17 fighter jets as part of a debt swap. The development is a surprising one as Saudi Arabia looks to assist its cash-strapped ally.
Saudi Arabia reportedly negotiating to purchase JF-17 fighter jets.
According to reporting by Reuters, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are in talks to convert around $2 billion worth of Saudi loans to Pakistan into a JF-17 fighter jet deal. Reuters cited two unnamed Pakistani sources. The quantity of jets was not disclosed.
The report comes at a time of deepening Saudi and Pakistani military cooperation and after the two signed a mutual defence pact in 2025. The pact came after Israel launched surprise air strikes on Hamas targets in neighbouring Qatar.
There is also believed to be an arrangement where Saudi Arabia has access to some Pakistani nuclear weapons, which RUSI reports the Saudis helped to fund in the 1970s.
Since 2018, Saudi Arabia has repeatedly financially assisted Pakistan. Currently, Pakistan is continuing to face acute financial strain.
One of the Reuters sources said that negotiations are limited to providing the Sino-Chinese JF-17 Thunder light combat fighter jets. The second source told Reuters that the jets are the primary option, with other things also being discussed.
One source said the total deal would be worth $4 billion, with another $2 billion for equipment over and above the loan conversion.
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Pakistan’s drive to export its JF-17 low-cost light-weight fighter
The Thunder was jointly developed by China and Pakistan as a low-cost solution for Pakistan’s cash-strapped air force. The airframes are manufactured and assembled in Pakistan using Chinese components.
Pakistan has been trying to find export sales for its JF-17 fighter jet and has sold the jet to Nigeria, Azerbaijan, and, most recently, Libya’s eastern-based Libyan National Army under warlord General Haftar.
Pakistan is also in talks to sell its JF-17s to Bangladesh, which is also considering purchasing more advanced Eurofighter jets. Since the Indian and Pakistani clashes in 2025, Pakistan has been marketing the JF-17 as combat-proven, even though Chinese J-10s are typically reported as having been the tip of the Pakistani spear.
Unclear what role the JF-17 would have in Saudi Arabia
It is unclear what role the JF-17 would have in the Royal Saudi Air Force. It already operates advanced Eurofighter Typhoons and F-15s, including the more advanced F-15SA.
DETERRENCE | A @usairforce B-52H Stratofortress, accompanied by four Saudi Arabian F-15C Eagles, conducts a low pass over Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, Nov. 1, 2019. The B-52H, deployed from Barksdale AFB, La., is part of a Bomber Task Force operating out of @HQUSAFEPA. pic.twitter.com/d2TzDou4Hg
— U.S. Air Forces Central (@USAFCENT) November 1, 2019
In total numbers, FlightGlobal’s 2026 review ranked Saudi Arabia as having 364 combat aircraft, making it the seventh largest in the world after Pakistan.
Saudi Arabia has a fleet of aging Panavia Tornados that will need to be retired in the coming years. Saudi Arabia is known to be in negotiations to purchase 54 Dassault Rafales, as well as 48 American F-35s, while Boeing is also offering the F-15EX.
There were previously reports that Saudi Arabia wanted to purchase more Eurofighters, but that had been blocked by Germany until recently. The JF-17 is significantly less capable than all these jets.
#Breaking: Massive airstrike by the Royal Saudi Air Force on a military camp of the #UAE-backed #STC (Southern Transitional Council) in Al-Mukalla. Multiple Emirati forces and their Yemeni allies are killed.
— Babak Taghvaee – The Crisis Watch (@BabakTaghvaee1) January 3, 2026
The #UAE and #SaudiArabia are now fighting each other in #Yemen for… pic.twitter.com/hWIQkM1Qvv
It is unclear how the US would react if Saudi Arabia were to purchase the semi-Chinese JF-17, as the US typically refrains from selling its F-35 to countries operating Chinese or Russian fighter jets and air defence systems.
Reporting on the matter, The War Zone went so far as to say, “...it isn’t clear if the Saudis even would want a light fighter like this at all, especially considering it could cause a rift with the U.S. at a critical time.”
Featured Image: Okonkwo john / Wikimedia
