Jaipur (Rajasthan) [India], May 7 (ANI): Former Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai on Thursday said the Indian Armed Forces are fully prepared to deal with any multi-front security challenge, including a combined threat from China and Pakistan, whose military ties he described as 'deeper than the seas and higher than the mountains.'

He further said India would always face 'the team that turns up on the park,' noting that 80 per cent of Pakistan's military equipment is of Chinese origin.

Addressing a press conference in Jaipur, Lt Gen Ghai downplayed concerns over the Pakistan-China axis, describing it as a known factor that does not warrant undue worry.

'The fact that Pakistan and China, in their own words, have a relationship that is deeper than the seas, higher than the mountains. The fact that Pakistan has 80% of its military equipment of Chinese origin is a given,' he said.

He added that Indian forces remain focused on operational readiness regardless of the number or nature of adversaries.

'Whether we are fighting against three adversaries on the same border, be it Turkey, China or Pakistan, look, you play against the team that turns up on the park. So that's not something that should worry us so much. It's not something which is in our control... India and its armed forces are all on the path to meeting these challenges. That's why a year hence we are all sitting in front of you, just to give you a sense and an assurance that what we learnt last year has been well imbibed and we are on a path,' Lt General Ghai added.

Highlighting the collusive aspects of China-Pakistan ties, Vice Admiral AN Pramod pointed to diplomatic and military indicators of coordination between the two countries.

'I would like to respond to your question through certain signposts which you have seen in the diplomatic front when the Pahalgam attack happened. China refrain from condemning the Pahalgam attack. Similarly, when the UN Security Council press statements were made, and that's the time when China again influenced, and the references of the resistance front were directly involved in the attack. That was not made,' he said.

'As General Ghai had mentioned, that 80% of arms imports are from China. That's a kind of economic, military, and strategic relationship with China and Pakistan. More importantly, in terms of the imports which happen in the arms and the niche platforms, whether it is ships, aircraft or submarines, the best of the platforms are given, and recently you saw also that they know they already announced in the next two years, 40-odd J-35s are going, and this is only on the hardware platform,' he added.

The remarks come in the backdrop of heightened security focus following Operation Sindoor, launched on May 7, 2025, after the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people. Indian forces had then struck nine terror launchpads in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir linked to terror outfits including Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed and Hizbul Mujahideen, eliminating over 100 terrorists.

The four-day military confrontation ended with a ceasefire agreement on May 10, 2025. (ANI)