US Senator Tim Sheehy: Pakistan appears to have won every engagement so far with Chinese technology against the largely Western technology used by India. That’s not good for us. China is no longer a near peer competitor but rather a peer to peer competitor with the US.
I began this story three days ago, but I decided to pause it for the sake of peace.
Now, I feel ready to fully engage as I see my existence is at stake—threatened by two Gujjus—and I will continue with my creative strategy.
But today I saw the whole world reporting that Modi’s empire of illusions now stands exposed, like the emperor with no clothes. The myth of invincibility, the choreography of dominance, and the Rafale-powered bravado have all crumbled in the face of one cold truth: the battlefield doesn’t lie.
His spectacle of superiority was built on borrowed tech and media muscle—not on battlefield supremacy. The silence of Indian jets, the retreat of doctrine, and the unmistakable debris scattered across Kashmir tell a different story—one of strategic paralysis and tactical emptiness.
At 4:00 a.m., something extraordinary happened—not on the battlefield, but in the diplomatic shadows. China’s ambassador to Pakistan reportedly made an urgent call to Rawalpindi. Within hours, a long-prepared contingency went live. What followed wasn’t just an air skirmish—it was a revelation that shattered the myth of India’s air dominance.
The Indian Air Force had been assembling for days—nearly 180 aircraft concentrated on the western front. The goal was clear: repeat Balakot, break Pakistani defenses, and restore the image of strategic supremacy.
But the skies were no longer the same.
Why They Stayed 300 km Away
The Indian Air Force never crossed the threshold. They knew what waited for them beyond it:
Chinese J-10C fighters, sleek and silent
PL-15 missiles, Mach 5 hunters with over 300 km range Erieye radars, linking every shooter into a single deadly nervous system
What India saw was not just Pakistani pilots—it was China’s entire air warfare doctrine stretching from Skardu to Pasni.
And the Rafales? They never saw it coming.
One Rafale—valued at over $250 million—was reportedly shot down mid-air. Another barely made it back. The Spectra EW system, designed to protect it, was overwhelmed. The PL-15 didn’t come with radar—it came with AI-guided silence.
This wasn’t a dogfight. It was an ambush.
The Pakistani Air Force, aided by Chinese targeting satellites and AWACS, executed a sensor-fusion kill. The Rafales never got a lock, never even saw their adversary. When the missiles hit, it was already over.
And India knew: if one Rafale can fall, so can five.
That’s why the fleet was grounded. That’s why they stay 300 km away from the border. Not because they lack courage—but because they now lack certainty.
Strategic Embarrassment
The implications are enormous. India’s prestige weapon, the Rafale, fell to a Chinese missile fired by a Pakistani jet. That’s not just a tactical failure—it’s a geopolitical message.
Even Bloomberg wrote it: this is a live demonstration of Chinese-Pakistani integrated warfare.
Western analysts are stunned. French defense contracts are rattled.
China, meanwhile, is watching quietly… and smiling.
The Game Has Changed
This isn’t 2019. This isn’t Balakot. India now knows that any venture into Pakistani airspace invites a death trap orchestrated by J-10Cs, PL-15s, and Pakistani resolve.
So they stay back.
Grounded by fear.
Blinded by radar.
And humiliated by silence.
“The Indian pilot didn’t fail from lack of skill.
He failed inside a battlefield he couldn’t see—
built by satellites, linked by sensors, and executed by machines.”
In May 2025, the game changed. India’s long-nurtured dream of aerial supremacy—anchored in the purchase of 36 Rafale jets, backed by the mythical Spectra EW suite and decades of French engineering—came crashing down over Kashmir.
It wasn’t a dogfight.
It wasn’t even a fair fight.
It was a doctrinal collapse, witnessed in real time by every military strategist across the globe.
The #Rafale was supposed to be untouchable. Its technology, unmatched. Its pilots, elite. But on that fateful day, it flew into a kill box it never saw. And never escaped.
The Lethal Kill Chain
China quietly stepped in—not in the way most Western analysts imagined.
There were no J-20s or war declarations.
There was a box. A network. A silent chain of observation and execution:
Saab Erieye AWACS patrolling silently
J-10C fighters flying in passive mode
PL-15E missiles—the export PL-15E, the domestic variant with over 300 km reach and Mach 5 speed—locked in and fired. The Rafale didn’t even know it was targeted until the missile was 50 km away.
At that speed, the Indian pilot had 9 seconds.
Not enough to react.
Not enough to survive.
Why the IAF Is Grounded
You don’t see the Indian Air Force over Kashmir anymore. Why?
Because every time a fighter lifts off, Pakistani radars pick it up.
Because the Erieye sees what Indian radars can’t.
Because the PL-15 launches from outside Rafale’s threat envelope.
Because the Rafale, once India’s silver bullet, has been turned into a $250 million sitting duck.
The IAF now flies 300 km behind its own borders.
Balakot 2.0? It will not happen. Not in this sky.
A Doctrinal Humbling
The world is watching the fallout. Dassault Aviation’s share price remains stagnant. Chinese defense stocks—AVIC, ALD Chengdu—are surging.
Because the battlefield was not decided in a dogfight.
It was decided by C4ISR supremacy—Command, Control, Communication, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance.
Pakistan did not outgun India. It out-networked it.
And India, stunned, grounded its birds.
India’s Pain, Pakistan’s Message
India invested in platforms. Pakistan invested in kill chains.
Modi’s doctrine was: buy dominance.
Reality proved: you must build dominance.
No “Spectra System” can counter a missile it never detects.
No EW suite can spoof a missile fed by satellite data.
No fighter jet can outrun the death it doesn’t see coming.
The sky has changed.
This is not the end of air combat.
It is the beginning of silent, invisible, unanswerable air dominance.
Source : Thick Brick Blogspot
Losses from the Pakistan-India conflict, according to a 3rd party perspective, CNN. It’s clear which side won.
India tried to project strength but ended up showing weakness
On May 10, United States President Donald Trump announced a “full and immediate” ceasefire between India and Pakistan brokered by his administration. US media reported that, alarmed by intelligence signalling further escalation, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles drove urgent mediation. Vance warned Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi of catastrophic risks and encouraged direct talks between India and Pakistan.
The announcement of the ceasefire was received across the world with a sigh of relief. The spectre of a nuclear exchange, which according to one 2019 study could kill up to 125 million people in less than a week, had fuelled regional anxiety and spurred the US diplomatic frenzy.
In India, however, Trump’s announcement was seen differently in some quarters. Former Indian army chief Ved Prakash Malik posted on X: “Ceasefire 10 May 25: We have left India’s future history to ask what politico-strategic advantages, if any, were gained after its kinetic and non-kinetic actions.” MP Asaduddin Owaisi wrote on the same platform: “I wish our PM @narendramodi had announced the ceasefire rather than the President of a foreign country. We have always been opposed to third party intervention since Simla (1972). Why have we now accepted it? I hope the Kashmir issue will not be internationalised, as it is our internal matter.”
The latter comment likely refers to Trump’s statement that he is willing to work with India and Pakistan “to see if, after a ‘thousand years,’ a solution can be arrived at concerning Kashmir”.
The ceasefire announcement by the US president appears to have been perceived by some in India as a sign of the Modi government’s retreat under US pressure while his offer to mediate on Kashmir is being seen as an indication that India’s longstanding rejection of third-party intervention is being undermined.
In South Asian geopolitics, perception often outpaces reality – until reality bites. India has long projected regional dominance, bolstered by economic growth and nuclear might. Yet its actions in the aftermath of the April 22 massacre carried out by the Resistance Front (TRF) in Kashmir exposed its vulnerabilities. Intended to assert strength, India’s response faltered, boosting Pakistan’s regional standing and leaving Modi’s government diplomatically weakened.
On May 7, India launched Operation Sindoor to dismantle terrorist bases linked to groups like the TRF, which, it claims, is supported by Pakistan. Backed by French-made Rafale jets, the operation sought to project Modi’s strongman image amid domestic outrage. Yet its success was contested. Pakistan reported civilian casualties, including children, while India insisted only terrorist sites were hit.
Pakistan’s air force scrambled its own jets to deflect the attack and claimed it downed five Indian jets, including three Rafales. Two US officials confirmed to the Reuters news agency that a Chinese-made J-10 jet shot down at least two Indian planes, aided by Chinese intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) support. India has not acknowledged any losses.
Indian media initially claimed devastating strikes on Pakistani cities, including Karachi’s seaport, but these reports, which were clearly part of propaganda efforts, were proven false.
On May 9, India launched missile attacks on Pakistani bases, including one near Islamabad, Pakistan claimed. The Pakistani army retaliated with short-range missile and drone strikes targeting Indian airbases at Udhampur, Pathankot, Adampur and Bhuj. Indian air force officer Vyomika Singh reported Pakistani drones and munitions hit civilian and military targets.
India’s image as a regional hegemon frayed. The Indian government clearly overestimated its Rafale jets and underestimated Pakistan’s Chinese-backed ISR systems, which enhanced battlefield precision.
China’s military support for Pakistan has increased significantly in recent years. Since 2020, it has accounted for 81 percent of Islamabad’s military imports.
For years, some Indian defence analysts warned that India’s military was unprepared for a China-supported Pakistan, given its limited US or Russian backing for its high-risk Kashmir gamble. Others criticised the government’s foreign policy for encouraging China-Pakistan rapprochement. Their warnings remained unheeded in New Delhi.
The events of the past few days exposed India’s strategic limits, replacing ambiguity with global scrutiny. The kneejerk reaction in New Delhi may be to increase the defence budget and deepen even further the militarisation of Kashmir.
As the Indian government plans its next steps, it should do well to consider that the status quo of shadow war and the cycle of covert aggression fuelling unrest is untenable. Both nations’ intelligence agencies have long backed proxies, driving instability from Kashmir to Afghanistan.
The path forward rests on New Delhi and Islamabad making wise choices. Restraint, not rhetoric, should shape policies moving forward. Failure to do so risks geopolitical turmoil, economic stagnation and hardship for millions. Home to a quarter of the world’s poorest people and more than 350 million illiterate adults, India and Pakistan cannot afford prolonged strife. Continued tensions could derail India’s growth and cripple Pakistan’s fragile economy, dwarfing any tactical gains.
Source : Al Jazeera
The Coverage Malaysia
