3 min readBeijingMay 9, 2026 06:26 AM IST
China, for the first time, has confirmed that it provided on-site technical support to Pakistan during the four-day conflict with India last year, official media reports here said.
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’s air force operates a fleet of Chinese-made J-10CE jets, produced by an AVIC subsidiary.
“At the support base, we frequently heard the roar of fighter jets taking off and the constant wail of air-raid sirens. By late morning, in May, the temperature was already approaching 50 degrees Celsius. It was a real ordeal for us, both mentally and physically,” Zhang said.
What drove his team was the “desire to do an even better job with on site support” and to ensure their equipment could “truly perform at its full combat potential”, Zhang told CCTV.
“That wasn’t just a recognition of the J10CE; it was also a testament to the deep bond we formed through working side by side, day in and day out,” he said.
Chinese foreign ministry and military officials have either parried or played down allegations of China’s support for Pakistan during the conflict.
There was no official reaction to India’s Deputy Chief of Army Staff Lt General Rahul R Singh’s assertion that Beijing provided active military support to Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, using the conflict as a “live lab”.
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In an address at a seminar organised by industry chamber FICCI in July last year, Lt Gen Singh suggested that China used its satellites to monitor Indian military deployment as the Pakistani military was getting live inputs on it during the DGMO (Director General of Military Operations)-level phone talks.
He likened China’s strategy during Operation Sindoor to its ancient military strategy of “36 stratagems” and killing the adversary with a “borrowed knife” to buttress the point that Beijing extended all possible support to Pakistan to cause pain to India.
Chinese officials and social media played up Pakistan’s claims of shooting down Indian fighter planes to showcase Chinese tech superiority, even though there was no evidence to support Islamabad’s assertion.
But they remained silent about Pakistan suffering heavy collateral damage, including several terrorist headquarters, key air bases and failure of Chinese radars, which enabled India’s air superiority.
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Latest media reports here said China plans to sell its stealth bomber J-35 to Pakistan. The disclosures by the Chinese officials about China’s assistance to Pakistan are seen as a new “sales pitch”, observers said.
