Turkiye plays major role in supplying military hardware to Islamabad
Deputy Chief of Army Staff Lt General Rahul R Singh speaks during a conference in New Delhi on Friday. Pic/PTI
China used Pakistan to cause pain to India and it was providing all possible support to its all-weather ally during the four-day conflict between Indian and Pakistani militaries in May, Deputy Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Rahul R Singh said on Friday.
In an address at industry chamber FICCI, the senior official said China also used the India-Pakistan conflict like a “live lab” available to test various weapon systems.
India was actually dealing with three adversaries, he said, suggesting that besides Pakistan and China, Turkiye was also playing a major role in supplying military hardware to Islamabad.
The Deputy Chief of Army Staff, who looks after the Indian Army’s capability development and sustenance vertical, said Beijing’s support to Islamabad was not surprising as 81 per cent of the military hardware of the Pakistani armed forces are from China.
“They (China) would rather use the neighbour to cause pain (to India) than getting involved in a mudslinging match on the northern border,” Lt General Singh said.
“Pakistan was the front face. We had China providing all possible support. And there was no surprise because, if you look at the statistics in the last five years, 81 per cent of the military hardware that Pakistan is getting is all Chinese,” he said.
Lt General Singh said Turkiye also played an important role in providing support to Pakistan. “We saw numerous drones coming and landing in the face of war, during the war, along with the individuals who were there.”
The Dy COAS said the “strategic messaging” by the Indian leadership was unambiguous, adding that the planning and selection of targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir was based on a lot of data.
India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terrorist infrastructure in territories controlled by Pakistan in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack.
The strikes triggered four days of intense clashes that ended with an understanding on stopping the military actions on May 10. New Delhi has been maintaining that India's fierce counterattack that day forced Pakistan to plead for ending the hostilities.
China objects to Rijiju’s remarks
China on Friday objected to Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju’s remarks that the incarnation of the Dalai Lama should follow his own wishes, urging India to act cautiously on Tibet-related issues to avoid its impact on the improvement of bilateral relations. India should be clear of the anti-China separatist nature of the 14th Dalai Lama and honour its commitments on Xizang (Tibet) related issues, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a media briefing here responding to a question on Rijiju’s comments. China refers to Tibet as Xizang. Rijiju has asserted that the decision on the incarnation of the Dalai Lama would be taken by the institution and the leader of Tibetan Buddhists himself and no one else.
This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
