The recent air clashes between Pakistan and India have presented the world with an unprecedented glimpse into Chinese military technology. During these encounters, Pakistan’s use of Chinese-made aircraft to down India’s French-made fighter jets marked the first time Chinese technology has been tested in a real battlefield scenario, juxtaposed against Western-made defense weapons. According to CNN, the rising tensions between Pakistan and India provided a global stage for Chinese military technology to prove itself, with Chinese defense companies seeing a sharp increase in their stock prices.
Shares of the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), which manufactures Chengdu Aircraft, saw a surge of 40 percent this week after Pakistan successfully used Chinese-made J-10C fighter jets to bring down Indian combat aircraft, including three French-made Rafales, two Russian-made MiG-29s, and Sukhoi Su-30s. The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, when asked about the details of the incident, refrained from commenting but acknowledged the significance of seeing its weapons perform in a real conflict. China, which has not fought a major war in the last four decades, has heavily invested in modernizing its military, and this innovation is no longer confined to the Chinese army but has extended to Pakistan, its long-time ally.
Over the past five years, China has supplied 81 percent of Pakistan’s imported arms, including advanced fighter jets, missiles, radars, and air defense systems. Some of these weapons were co-produced by China and Pakistan or manufactured in Pakistan with Chinese technology. As Sajjan Gohel, Director of International Security at the Asia Pacific Foundation of London, observed, this situation effectively turns the India-Pakistan conflict into a testing ground for Chinese defense exports. Recent joint military exercises between China and Pakistan have included aerial, naval, and ground drills, with advanced techniques such as AI-based targeting now incorporated into their training. Craig Singleton, an analyst at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, notes that the combination of Chinese hardware, training, and AI technology has shifted the balance of power in the region.
The escalation of tensions between Pakistan and India, particularly following the massacre of tourists in occupied Kashmir, has drawn the attention of global powers. The historic conflict, rooted in the Kashmir dispute, has seen both countries fight three wars since 1947. During the Cold War, the Soviet Union supported India, while the US and China backed Pakistan. In recent years, India has moved closer to the US, positioning itself as a strategic counterweight to China. Meanwhile, Pakistan has strengthened its ties with China, which also serves as a crucial partner in the Belt and Road Initiative. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) reports that by the end of the 2000s, Pakistan was receiving nearly equal arms supplies from both the US and China.
However, with the US reducing its arms deliveries, China has filled the gap. This shift is evident in the recent air battle, where Pakistan’s use of J-10C fighter jets and JF-17 Thunder planes led to the destruction of five Indian aircraft, including three Rafales, one MiG-29, and one Su-30. Pakistani officials confirmed that the engagement took place over a distance of more than 160 kilometers, involving a total of 125 aircraft. Salmān Ali Butāni, an international relations scholar at Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, described this clash as the most intense aerial engagement between two nuclear powers to date. While India has been reluctant to acknowledge its losses, a French Ministry of Defence source confirmed the loss of at least one modern Rafale aircraft to Pakistani forces. Bilal Khan, founder of the Toronto-based defense think tank KOVA Group, remarked that this conflict demonstrated Pakistan’s weaponry is now on par with the latest Western arms.
Chinese nationalists and defense experts have hailed the success of the J-10C fighter jets, viewing it as a victory for China’s defense industry. AVIC’s Chengdu Aircraft shares on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange surged by 17 percent on Wednesday and an additional 20 percent on Thursday. The J-10C, a multi-role, single-engine aircraft, is the latest version of China’s fighter fleet, featuring advanced avionics and AESA radar, placing it in the 4.5 generation category. The first batch of J-10C aircraft was delivered to Pakistan just three years ago, in 2022, and has since become part of Pakistan’s most advanced fighter jet fleet, alongside the JF-17 Thunder Block III, a joint venture between China and Pakistan.
China’s growing influence in the global arms market is evident in the increasing popularity of its defense exports. According to Zhu Bo, a senior defense analyst, the success of the J-10C in bringing down a Rafale is a significant boost for Chinese arms exports and may even surprise countries like the US, highlighting China’s growing military strength. The Stockholm Peace Research Institute points out that while the US remains the world’s largest arms exporter, China is now the fourth-largest, with two-thirds of its exports going to Pakistan.
The aftermath of the clash is likely to shift the military dynamics not just in South Asia but globally. Countries in the Middle East and North Africa, which have limited access to Western arms, may now turn to China for advanced defense technology. As Craig Singleton aptly put it, war is not just about acquiring aircraft; it’s about a comprehensive strategy, training, and testing military capabilities. Similarly, Fabian Hoffmann of the University of Oslo observed that India might have underestimated Pakistan’s capabilities, particularly regarding the PL-15 missile with limited range, which allowed Pakistani jets to outmaneuver their Indian counterparts. The recent air clash between Pakistan and India and Pakistan’s clear superiority in the engagement has not only redefined the military balance in South Asia but has also provided the first real comparison of Chinese and Western weaponry on the global stage.
