ISLAMABAD/BEIJING — Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has approved a deal “years in the making” to buy eight submarines from China, a Pakistani government official said on Thursday, in what could be one of China's largest overseas weapons sales once it is signed. The official, who was present at Tuesday's meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Defense which was briefed by the Navy, said the deal to buy the diesel-electric submarines would likely be signed by Chinese President Xi Jinping when he visits, “but that is still not final”. Xi was due to travel to Pakistan this month, the government in Islamabad has said. — Reuters
