Nuclear submarines, K-6 missiles, MIRV systems...: India capable of defeating US, China in..., coward Pakistan accuses Modi govt of...

India.com

23-07-2025

Pakistan fears the destructive power of India's nuclear-powered submarines. (File)
Months after India's BrahMos missiles pulverized Pakistani military infrastructure, including inflicting critical damage to eleven airbases of the Pakistan Air Force, during Operation Sindoor, Pakistani military experts have acknowledged the power of India's destructive missile capabilities, and expressed 'concern' over New Delhi's plans to build a bunker buster bomb akin to the 30000 lbs GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) which the US dropped on Iranian nuclear facilities last month. Why Pakistan fears India's sea-based missiles?
In a piece published in the Dawn, Dr. Aqeel Akhtar, visiting faculty at Islamabad-based National Defense University, termed the India's sea missile capability as a major threat to Pakistan, while also accusing New Delhi of aggressively increasing naval constructions and missile power in the Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean and the Arabian Sea.
'India-led nuclearisation of the Indian Ocean has increased strategic asymmetries, significantly intensified military competition and strained strategic stability in the region. India's nuclear submarines, nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs) and nuclear-powered attack submarines (SSNs) pose a major threat to Pakistan,' he wrote, adding that New Delhi's powerful sea-based nuclear deterrence development marks a major shift from a defensive to an offensive maritime stance. How India bolstered sea-based nuclear deterrence?
The Pakistani academic alleged that the Narendra Modi government has 'weaponized' India's growing naval power and adopted an aggressive maritime strategy, which could upset the regional power balance as well as the global strategic balance. Akhtar pointed out that India's SSBN (Nuclear Ballistic Missile Submarine) program is in its advanced stage, which poses the biggest threat to Pakistan.
The Dawn article also mentions INS Arihant and INS Arighat, both nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs) of the Arihant class, as the bulwark of India's sea-based nuclear deterrence, that have taken the the country's nuclear triad to the next level. The two submersibles can carry medium-range and long-range missiles such as K-15 (750 km range) and K-4 (3500 km range), and India also plans to deploy ultra long-range submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) like K-5 (6000 km) and K-6 (8000 km) in the future. Why India can defeat China, US, or any other country in Indian Ocean?
In his article, Dr Akhtar expresses 'concern' that India's maritime capabilities are rapidly approaching levels where the Indian Navy can challenge and defeat powerful foes like the China or even United States, especially in the Indian Ocean region.
'India now has the capability to keep more than 400 nuclear warheads, out of which over 100 nuclear ballistic missiles can be deployed on SSBN. With this capability, no power in the world, even US or China, can dare to fight Indian naval forces in the sea. The destruction will anything beyond what the enemy could imagine,' he writes.
The report accuses India of deviating from its declared minimum deterrence policy (CMD), particularly by deploying weapons with MIRV (Multiple Independently Targetable Reentry Vehicle) capability, that could 'endanger strategic stability in the region'.
Dr Akhtar's piece also quotes an article by Ashley J. Tellis, senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, in which she emphasized New Delhi's goal is to control not just China, but any other country, including the United States, that aspires to dominate the Indian Ocean region.
Notably, Pakistan has urged United Nations Security Council and the US-led West to curb India's ICBM program, including the Agni-V and Agni-VI missiles, citing 'threat' to global peace.