While speaking at a FICCI defence seminar on Friday in a keynote address, Lieutenant General Rahul R Singh, Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Capability Development and Sustenance), claimed that China is using Pakistan as a proxy to test military technologies.
Lt Gen Singh referred to the recent counter-terror operation, Operation Sindoor—initiated in response to the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 civilians—and referred to Pakistan's increasing dependence on Chinese weaponry.
"It doesn't come as a surprise that 81% of the military gear Pakistan has bought in the last five years is Chinese. China prefers to cause pain through its neighbors rather than fight itself," he stated.
He emphasized that China is actually making active combat areas "live labs" for testing its weapons. "This has to be taken very seriously," he cautioned.
Offering greater insight into cross-border relationships, Lt Gen Singh said, "We had one border and two opponents, actually three. Pakistan was at the forefront. China was giving all kinds of assistance. Turkey too played a significant role in offering the kind of assistance it offered.". When DGMO-level negotiations were underway, Pakistan actually brought up the fact that your such and such crucial vectors are on stand-by and asked us to retract it. They were receiving real time feed from China.
Addressing India's defence readiness, the Lieutenant General credited a few homegrown air defense systems for being effective during Operation Sindoor but also admitted that a number of systems revealed glaring weaknesses.
We cannot afford systems like Israel's Iron Dome due to our geography and limited means. Nevertheless, our population clusters need to be guarded by multiple layers of air defence," he pointed out.
He underlined the growing dominance of contemporary combat technologies like drones, anti-drone systems, and long-range artillery, even as he underlined the necessity of quick adaptation. "We have to move very fast. It's a cat-and-mouse game," he added.
Lt Gen Singh also addressed the strategic importance of upgrading C4ISR—Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance—and blending civil-military capability to maintain strategic advantage.
Operation Sindoor not only displayed the efficacy of India's military reaction but also provided valuable information regarding the changing defence relationships of China, Pakistan, and Turkey.
