
Hegseth calls for Asia allies to boost defenses in face of China's ‘imminent' threat
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Saturday delivered a dire warning to the Asia-Pacific region and the world: China's designs on Taiwan pose a threat to global peace and stability that requires 'our allies and partners do their part on defense.' 'There is no reason to sugarcoat it. The threat China poses is real. And it could be imminent,' Hegseth said in a speech to the Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's premier defense forum, in Singapore. 'Beijing is credibly preparing potentially to use military force to alter the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific,' with People's Liberation Army (PLA) forces training daily to take military action against Taiwan, Hegseth said.
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Mint
an hour ago
- Mint
India went 300 kms inside Pakistan, and penetrated with ‘pinpoint accuracy' says CDS Anil Chauhan
Indian Armed Forces Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Anil Chauhan said that India went 300kms inside Pakistan during Operation Sindoor and penetrated with 'pinpoint accuracy.' Adding to new details about Operation Sindoor, CDS Chauhan further added that the coveted operation has drawn a 'new red line' of intolerance against terror. CDS Anil Chauhan made the comments during an interview with Bloomberg TV on Saturday, while attending the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. 'We were able to penetrate air defence as long as 300 km with pinpoint accuracy and targets, airfields and infrastructure, deep inside Pakistan," said General Anil Chauhan. In this image posted by @HQ_IDS_India via X on May 31, 2025, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan during a meeting with Commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command Admiral Samuel J Paparo, on the sidelines of the 22nd Shangri La Dialogue, in Singapore From Pakistan's Muzaffarabad to Bahawalpur, India struck key terror hubs long believed to harbour Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad operatives on May 7 – the DGMOs had said during earlier briefings on Operation Sindoor. Chauhan also downplayed Pakistan's claims about the effectiveness of weaponry deployed from China and other countries, saying they 'didn't work." He added that Operation Sindoor had drawn a 'new red line' of intolerance against terror. Multiple reports had already been doing the rounds about Indian fighter jets downed during the conflict with Pakistan. Without going into specifications, CDS Chauhan said India swiftly rectified its 'tactical mistakes.' CDS Chauhan added that India learnt from the incident and resumed high-precision strikes deep in Pakistani territory. 'The good part is that we are able to understand the tactical mistake which we made, remedy it, rectify it, and then implement it again after two days and flew all our jets again, targeting at long range,' Chauhan said. Apart from elaborating on the mistakes made, and the lessons learnt by India, CDS Anil Chauhan flagged Pakistan's claims that it shot down six Indian warplanes as 'absolutely incorrect." Without getting into further details about Indian fighter planes being downed, Chauhan added: 'What is important is that, not the jet being down, but why they were being down. 'Why they were down, what mistakes were made — that are important,' Chauhan said when asked about the fighter jets.'Numbers are not important,' he added. India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting at least nine terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. This was a retaliation to the Pahalgam terror attack, which claimed the lives of 26 people. The cross-border strikes sparked four days of heavy clashes between India and Pakistan, which eventually came to a halt following a mutual understanding to cease military actions on May 10.


India Today
3 hours ago
- India Today
Even Pak did it: Congress reiterates demand for Parliament session on Op Sindoor
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday reiterated his party's demand for a special session of Parliament to discuss Operation Sindoor and the terror attack in Pahalgam. Addressing reporters, Kharge said that the Centre should take a cue from Pakistan, which has convened its Parliament and held deliberations on the developments, and show similar seriousness in addressing the said that the entire nation stands with the armed forces and called for unity on issues concerning national security. He urged all political leaders to exercise restraint and avoid politicising military a veiled swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Congress President said, "We must know when to speak what. There should be unity in national matters and a focus on defeating our opponents. All leaders across the country should remain silent regarding matters of national security. It's better to understand what has happened before speaking about it. There should be no election campaign before the delegation reports are out. PM Modi should refrain from giving election speeches. There is no need for self-praise. The entire nation stands with our armed forces." He further questioned the Prime Minister's public remarks on the military operation, noting that the PM had earlier stated he had given full authority to the armed forces. "Why is he speaking again now? The Prime Minister should not make self-glorifying speeches. We have said, let's convene Parliament and talk. Even Pakistan has convened its Parliament and is holding discussions. None of us will speak against the nation," Kharge remarks came a day after he accused the BJP-led government of misleading the nation over Operation Sindoor. In a post on social media, the Congress chief alleged that instead of offering clarity on US President Donald Trump taking credit for the ceasefire between India and Pakistan, Prime Minister Modi was "on an election blitz, taking personal credit for the valour of the armed forces".He also referred to the interview given by India's Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Anil Chauhan, in Singapore, saying that the revelations raised important questions about defence preparedness."In the wake of the remarks made by the CDS in Singapore in an interview, there are some very important questions which need to be asked. These can only be asked if a Special Session of the Parliament is immediately convened. The Modi Government has misled the nation. The fog of war is now clearing," Kharge Chauhan, who was in Singapore for the Shangri-La Dialogue, admitted in an interview with Bloomberg for the first time that an unspecified number of Indian fighter jets were downed during the recent hostilities with India's Operation Sindoor, which was launched after the Pahalgam attacks, Pakistan had claimed that it had downed six Indian fighter jets, a claim India had previously Chauhan categorically rejected Pakistan's assertion that it had shot down six Indian jets, including four Rafales, calling it 'absolutely incorrect'."What is important is that, not the jet being down, but why they were being down... Why they were down, what mistakes were made - that are important. Numbers are not important," General Chauhan to the comments, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said that Defence MInister Rajanth Singh should have informed the political parties about the losses before a military official revealed them InMust Watch


India Gazette
3 hours ago
- India Gazette
CDS General Anil Chauhan's statements raise many questions: Congress' Khera raises questions about defence preparedness
New Delhi [India], June 1 (ANI): Congress leader Pawan Khera on Sunday raised several questions, including the sudden nature of the ceasefire announcement by the US President and the implications of Donald Trump's claims. He also pointed to the statements of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Anil Chauhan, raising further questions about defence preparedness. 'Questions are arising every day, the biggest of them is Donald Trump's claims. We also want to know the conditions of the ceasefire, why was it so sudden and announced by the US President?... The CDS' statements again raise many questions. The government needs to come forward... The country needs to know our defence preparedness...,' Khera told ANI. US President Donald Trump on Friday (local time) once again claimed credit for brokering a cessation of hostilities between India and Pakistan, asserting that his administration's trade negotiations potentially averted a nuclear war between the two nations. During an interaction with reporters, Trump expressed pride in achieving peace through trade rather than military conflict, reigniting debates over the US role in the recent India-Pakistan ceasefire following the escalation of tension after the Pahalgam Terror Attack and India's subsequent reply through Operation Sindoor. Moreover, speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, the CDS admitted that the Armed Forces had suffered losses in the initial stages of the operation but then struck with impunity at Pakistan's bases. 'So what I can say is, on May 7 and the initial stages, there were losses, but the numbers and that's not important. What was important is why did these losses occur, and what will we do after that? So we rectified the tactics and then went back on seventh, eighth and 10th, and 10th in large numbers, to hit their bases deep inside Pakistan, penetrated all their defences with impunity, with scattered opposition strikes,' Gen Chauhan was quoted as saying by Reuters. Earlier, on May 11, Director General Air Operations Air Marshal Bharti, when commenting on Aircraft losses, had said, 'I can't comment about loss of aircraft as we are in a combat scenario and losses are part of combat.' Khera stressed the need for the government to come forward and provide clarity on these issues, ensuring that the country is informed about its defence preparedness and the circumstances surrounding the ceasefire. He also emphasized the party's long-standing demand for a special session of Parliament to discuss critical issues. He cited the precedent of calling a special session during the 1962 war, highlighting the need for transparency and accountability in governance. 'Congress party has been demanding for a long time that a special session of the Parliament be called. It was called during the war of 1962, but it's astonishing that now, even after the war has ended, there has been no Parliament session,' Khera told ANI. Earlier in the day, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh expressed disappointment that the Defence Minister did not share crucial information with opposition leaders in two all-party meetings, following recent comments made by CDS Gen Anil Chauhan in Singapore. He further questioned why the government waited for Gen Chauhan to make these revelations rather than share the information with opposition leaders and convene a special session of Parliament. 'It would have been better that what he has spoken, the Defence Minister should have said in the two all-party meetings he had chaired... Whatever Gen Chauhan has said, this information should have been shared with the opposition leaders, and a special session of the Parliament should have been convened. We had to wait for General Chauhan to make these revelations from Singapore...' said Ramesh. (ANI)