'One border, three adversaries': China used Pak as live lab to test weapons, says deputy COAS on Operation Sindoor; outlines key lessons from India-Pakistan escalation
Operation Sindoor
, launched by India in the aftermath of the deadly Pahalgam terror attack, was used by China as a pretext to turn Pakistan into a testing ground for it s weapons, deputy chief of army staff (Capability Development and Sustenance), Lieutenant General Rahul R Singh said on Friday.
He added that India essentially faced three adversaries -- including Turkey, which provided drones and trained staff to Islamabad -- along a single border.
Speaking at the 'New Age Military Technologies' event organised by FICCI, Lt Gen Singh said the operation highlighted the critical need for enhanced air defence and rapid technological advancement in military operations.
He revealed that Pakistan received live battlefield inputs from China during the conflict.
'When the DGMO-level talks were on, Pakistan had the live updates of our important vectors, from China,' Singh said, adding, 'China can test its weapons against other weapons, so it's like a live lab available to them. Turkey also played an important role… they gave Bayraktar and numerous other drones.'
Lt Gen Singh said Pakistan led the confrontation while China provided 'all possible support' and even real-time intelligence inputs.
'When DGMO-level talks were on, Pakistan had the live updates of our important vectors, from China,' he revealed.
Also read:
Big revelation on Op Sindoor: 'China fed Pak live data on India assets, Turkey sent trained staff'
The deputy COAS flagged Pakistan's increasing reliance on Chinese military supplies, saying, 'In the last five years, 81% of the military hardware with Pakistan is Chinese.' He warned that the next potential conflict could see population centres being directly targeted. 'This time, our population centres were not quite addressed, but next time, we need to be prepared for that.'
Emphasising the importance of building a robust air defence system, Lt Gen Singh said, 'Air Defence and how it panned out during the entire operation was important… We need a robust air defence system.'
The senior officer also spoke about the strategic objectives behind Operation Sindoor, which was launched after the Pahalgam attack that claimed 26 civilian lives. The assault was claimed by The Resistance Front (TRF), a Lashkar-e-Taiba proxy. Singh said the Indian Armed Forces responded with a calibrated yet decisive approach.
Key lessons from Operation Sindoor, according to Lt Gen Rahul R Singh:
No more tolerance for terror strikes: 'There is no scope of absorbing the pain the way we did a few years ago.'
Precision targeting through intelligence: 'The planning and selection of targets was based on a lot of data that was collected using technology and human intelligence.'
Careful operational restraint: 'A total of 21 targets were identified, out of which nine targets we thought would be prudent to engage... It was only the final day or the final hour that the decision was taken that these nine targets would be engaged.'
Tri-services approach: 'A considered decision was taken that it will be a tri-services approach to send the right message that we indeed are an integrated force.'
Escalation control: 'An important consideration was that we should always be at the top of the escalation ladder.'
Strategic war termination: 'War is easy to initiate, but it's very difficult to control. So I would say that was a very masterly stroke that was played to stop the war at an appropriate time.'
Firm deterrence: 'There would be punitive action if required... That is one important message that stands out loud and clear.'
Referring to the post-operation ceasefire with Pakistan, Singh said, 'Punch was ready, Pakistan realised it could be in a bad condition, that is the reason why they asked for a ceasefire.'
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