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A month after Operation Sindoor, which triggered a major military escalation between India and Pakistan, Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Capability Development and Sustenance), Lieutenant General Rahul R. Singh, has said that 81 per cent of the military hardware used by the Pakistani Army is of Chinese origin.
Speaking at the ‘New Age Military Technologies: Industry Capabilities & Way Forward’ seminar organised by FICCI in the capital on Friday, Lt Gen Singh highlighted key lessons from the four-day conflict that began on May 7, describing it as a stark reminder of the complexities of modern warfare.
“One border, two adversaries — Pakistan was the front face, but China provided all possible support,” Singh said. “It’s no surprise. In the last five years, 81 per cent of the military hardware that Pakistan has acquired is of Chinese origin.”
According to Lt Gen Singh, the China-Pakistan alliance has effectively turned Pakistan into a “live laboratory” for Beijing to test its weapons systems against various platforms in real-world conditions.
“China, perhaps, sees this as an opportunity to test its weapons against other operational systems. It’s like a live lab available to it,” he noted.
He further said that China provided real-time intelligence support to Pakistan during the conflict, including during sensitive moments such as ongoing negotiations between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) of both sides.
Lt Gen Singh also addressed a significant concern within the defence and security establishment: China is utilising its satellites to monitor Indian military deployments. He emphasised that an important lesson learned is the significance of Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) and the need for civil-military fusion. A considerable amount of work remains to be done in this area.
Turkey’s Support to Pakistan
The senior Army official also pointed to Turkey’s backing of Pakistan during the conflict, observing that India now faces not one but three adversaries on its western front.
“The alignment of China, Pakistan and Turkey during the conflict presents a significant strategic challenge,” he said.
On India’s Air Defence Capabilities
Responding to comparisons with Israel’s Iron Dome air defence system, Singh made it clear that India cannot adopt such systems wholesale due to its geographical scale and cost constraints.
“We do not have the luxury that Israel enjoys with Iron Dome and other air defence features. Our country is vast, and such systems are extremely expensive,” he explained.
Team BharatShakti
