During the intense conflict between India and Pakistan in May 2025, China provided Pakistan with "live inputs"—real-time intelligence—on key Indian military positions, according to Lieutenant General Rahul Singh, the Deputy Chief of India's Army.

This revelation was made public during a defence industry event in New Delhi, where Singh emphasised the urgent need for India to upgrade its air defence systems in light of the technological and intelligence support Pakistan received.

The conflict, which lasted four days and was the most severe between the two nuclear-armed neighbours in decades, involved the use of missiles, drones, and artillery. It was triggered by an April attack on Hindu tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir, which India attributed to Pakistan, though Islamabad denied involvement.

Singh described the situation as India facing "two adversaries": Pakistan as the "front face" and China providing "all possible support." He specifically detailed that during Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) level talks, Pakistani officials demonstrated knowledge of Indian military deployments and vectors, information that Singh said was being relayed in real time from China. However, he did not elaborate on how India confirmed the existence or nature of these live inputs.

China's support reportedly included:

Supplying real-time intelligence on Indian troop and weapon deployments.
Assisting Pakistan in reorganising its radar and air defence systems to better detect Indian movements.
Helping Pakistan adjust its satellite coverage over India in the lead-up to hostilities.

"There are a few lessons from Operation Sindoor. The strategic messaging by leadership was unambiguous. There is no scope of absorbing the pain the way we did a few years ago. The planning and selection of targets was based on a lot of data that was collected using technology and human intelligence. So a total of 21 targets were actually 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," Lt Gen Singh said.

"We had one border and two adversaries, actually three. Pakistan was in the front. China was providing all possible support. 81 per cent of the military hardware with Pakistan is Chinese. China is able to test its weapons against other weapons, so it's like a live lab available to them. Turkey also played an important role in providing the type of support it did. When DGMO-level talks were on, Pakistan had the live updates of our important vectors, from China. We need a robust air defence system," he further added.

India’s Chief of Defence Staff previously noted that while satellite imagery and similar intelligence could be commercially procured, the direct pipeline of live updates from China to Pakistan represented a significant escalation in support.

Turkey also played a notable role by supplying Pakistan with Bayraktar drones and other unmanned aerial vehicles, as well as providing training to Pakistani personnel. This support further complicated the conflict, turning the battlefield into what Singh described as a "live lab" for Chinese and Turkish military hardware.

Despite these claims, Pakistan has denied receiving active support from China during the conflict, and neither China nor Pakistan provided immediate official responses to requests for comment from media outlets.

Indian officials stressed that the technological and intelligence collaboration between China and Pakistan underscores the growing complexity of regional security dynamics and the necessity for India to rapidly modernise its military capabilities.

China's operational support to Pakistan during the May 2025 conflict was significant and multifaceted, involving real-time intelligence sharing and technological assistance, while Turkey contributed advanced drone technology and personnel training.

These developments have heightened India's concerns about a two-front threat and the need for urgent military modernisation.

Based On A Reuters Report