The government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has concluded plans to use $1.5 of $3 billion allocated to it by Qatar to purchase 36 Chinese Chengdu J-10C fighters as tensions heighten in the Middle East.

The J-10C are said to be cheaper and more promising than the Russian MiG-35 fighters the country was reportedly interested in buying.

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“The Emir (head of state) of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani arrived in Iran and met with the country’s president Rouhani in Tehran.

“Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani offered Iran $3 billion in financial assistance on behalf of Qatar for compensating the families of the victims who were killed in Iran. However, according to a report from the Reuters news agency, Iran plans to use $1-1.5 billion as compensation to the victims’ families, and the remaining funds will be used to purchase new weaponry and equipment.

“Iran’s Air Force is currently in the worst position with respect to equipment, and new fighters are urgently needed to replace the old ones. The J-10 is one of the potential targets,” Sina reports.

At the same time, the Chinese news agency points out that Iran remains extremely interested in Russian Su-30 fighters.

However, in light of the recent criticism against Russian military aircraft, primarily on account of the lack of spare parts, Iran is still greatly interested in China’s Chengdu J-10.

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