India confirms loss of fighter jets in conflict with Pakistan, denies nuclear threat escalation
PTC Web Desk: In a major revelation, India’s Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan has officially confirmed that India lost fighter jets during the recent military conflict with Pakistan in May. This marks the first public acknowledgment from the Indian military about aircraft losses in what has become the worst India-Pakistan escalation in over five decades.
Speaking to Bloomberg TV during the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, General Chauhan refrained from disclosing the exact number of jets lost but dismissed Pakistan’s claim of shooting down six Indian warplanes as “absolutely incorrect.”
“What is important is not the number of jets that were downed, but understanding why they were downed,” said General Chauhan. “We identified the tactical mistakes, corrected them, and resumed air operations within two days with enhanced precision and strategy,” he added.
His remarks provide the clearest insight to date into the Indian military’s performance during the May 7 conflict, which followed a terror attack in Indian-administered Kashmir on April 22 that killed 26 civilians. India blamed the attack on Pakistan-backed militants, a claim Islamabad strongly denied.
Pakistan's claims and India's response
Earlier in May, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif claimed that Pakistan had shot down six Indian jets during the four-day exchange of fire, which included missile strikes, artillery exchanges, drone warfare, and aerial combat. These claims have not been independently verified.
Until now, India had remained silent on its own combat losses. “We were able to strike high-value Pakistani air bases located over 300 km deep into enemy territory, with meter-level precision, despite heavy air defenses,” Chauhan added.
He also downplayed Pakistan’s reliance on Chinese military equipment, suggesting that their imported systems “didn’t work as intended.”
Nuclear escalation concerns
Responding to US President Donald Trump’s claim that the US helped prevent a nuclear war between India and Pakistan, General Chauhan said such speculation was “far-fetched.” He said nuclear weapons were never on the table, and communication channels between New Delhi and Islamabad remained open throughout the crisis.
“There is significant space between conventional military operations and the nuclear threshold,” Chauhan noted.
“We had clear escalation management protocols, and multiple steps before even approaching the nuclear red line.”
The Indian military chief also stated that a cessation of hostilities is currently holding, but its continuity would depend on Pakistan’s future conduct.
“We have laid out clear red lines,” he said, signaling that India is prepared for deterrence but is also seeking strategic restraint.
Meanwhile, both countries have dispatched high-level delegations to global capitals to shape international narratives around the conflict. India is keen on highlighting its precision warfare capabilities and its measured response to provocations, while Pakistan seeks to spotlight the scale of military losses it inflicted.
A report from a defense research agency under India’s Ministry of Defence recently indicated that China provided satellite intelligence and air defense assistance to Pakistan during the hostilities. However, General Chauhan dismissed the effectiveness of such external support.
- With inputs from agencies
