Need to boost AI, autonomous system capability for future warfare: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh

New Delhi: India needs to strengthen its capabilities in artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, data analytics and secure communication networks to stay ahead of the enemy in the rapidly evolving geopolitical security scenario, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Friday.

“Future wars will not be won solely through weaponry, but through innovative thinking and enhanced synergy,” he said, noting that conflicts would increasingly be shaped by hybrid threats, information dominance and operations conducted simultaneously across cyber, space, electromagnetic and cognitive domains.

The minister was addressing the second edition of Joint Commanders Conference at Jaipur in which senior commanders from the three Services and the top brass of the defence ministry deliberated on the ways to prepare for future conflicts.

Singh asked the commanders to spring up an ‘element of surprise’ to remain unpredictable to the adversaries and secure a strategic edge in any given situation. In addition, the commanders are to be vigilant about possible surprises from the enemy and prepare for all spectrums of conflict.

On the first anniversary of Operation Sindoor, the minister said the 88-hour long conflict between India and Pakistan was a “short-duration, deep-penetration, high-intensity, and high-impact operation” that showcased India’s ability to compel its adversary to surrender.

“The operation was a demonstration of India’s growing capabilities and a symbol of the nation’s new military ethos,” he said.

A day before, addressing the media, top military commanders said the two biggest outcomes of Operation Sindoor were to cease hostility with Pakistan on India’s own terms without locking the country in a long-drawn conflict and reaffirming the primacy of air power.

While the commanders spoke at length on China-Pakistan collusion during Operation Sindoor, a report in the Chinese media has now made the first official acknowledgement of Beijing’s involvement in the India-Pakistan conflict.

China's state broadcaster CCTV on Thursday aired an interview with Zhang Heng, an engineer from the Aviation Industry Corporation of China's (AVIC) Chengdu Aircraft Design and Research Institute, a key developer of China's advanced fighter aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicle design.

Zhang had provided technical support to Pakistan during the four-day conflict last May, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported, quoting CCTV. Pakistan Air Force operates a fleet of Chinese-made J-10CE jets, produced by an AVIC subsidiary.

Indian Defence Ministry hasn’t yet responded to the Chinese media report.