NEW DELHI: A “belligerent” China will continue to assert itself as it tries to establish dominance in the countries surrounding India along the land borders, as well as in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), the chief of staff said Thursday. defense, General Bipin Rawat.
With India facing a complex and challenging security environment, the military must be prepared for military threats from both China and the United States. Pakistan transforming itself into an integrated war machine through the establishment of unified theater commands and other similar measures, Gen Rawat said.
Addressing a webinar hosted by the College of Defense Administration (CDM) in Secunderabad, the senior military officer said: “2020 has been an interesting year. The world had to deal with a corona pandemic … losing millions of lives … We (India) also faced our belligerent neighbor (China) on the northern borders and thwarted their nefarious design. ”
“Now more than at any other time, military transformation is vital to us. The threats for which our armed forces must organize come mainly from China and Pakistan. In the future, China will continue to assert itself, seeking to establish dominance in the states surrounding India and in the IOR, ”he added.
Emphasizing that the Indian armed forces “will increasingly need to achieve more with less” due to budget constraints, despite facing greater challenges likely than any other military in the world, the CDS said the Army, Navy and IAF they must “review” force structures, doctrines, concepts, and technology.
“Some important steps we must take include: defining the national security strategy, strategic direction of superior defense, structural reforms in operational organizations and superior defense,” he added.
The webinar was held just prior to the Combined Commanders Conference (CCC) which started in Kevadia in Gujarat and will be led by the Defense Minister. Rajnath singh on friday and the prime minister Narendra modi on Saturday.
The CCC will take place in a context of no de-escalation with China in the Depsang Plains, Gogra, Hot Springs and Demchok areas in eastern Ladakh, although the two armies disengaged on both sides of the Pangong Tso last month.
Gen Rawat, in the webinar, said that the Indian Army since Independence has grown from a small force with limited war capabilities to a large, modern fighting machine.
“Organizational structures for conventional wars or limited conflicts under the nuclear overhang already exist, but they need to be remodeled, re-equipped and reoriented to carry out joint battles in the digitized battlespace to have the flexibility needed for other types of operations,” he He said.
“We must also effectively seize the opportunity our island territories provide, allowing us to extend our reach, orchestrate our defense strategy and also bring depth to the continent,” he added.
On Video: India Faces Complex Security and Challenging Environment – CDS Rawat
.
