A deep dive into Operation Sindoor, revealing how China used Pakistan as a proxy to test India’s tactics, systems, and wartime strategy
China’s Proxy Playbook & Pakistan’s ‘Bhaade ki Fauj’
Every nation has its strategic habits. Some nations innovate, some intimidate - and some outsource.
Pakistan, unfortunately, has perfected the last one.
For decades, Pakistan has functioned as a proxy military extension for bigger powers. From renting out its Army to Middle Eastern monarchies to letting its Air Force fight other people’s wars, it has earned the unflattering slang title: “Bhaade ki Fauj” - forces on rent. Slightly more respectable than mercenaries only because it flies a national flag.
So when Op Sindoor unfolded, it was no surprise that the Pakistanis once again appeared - not as primary players, but as proxies for Chinese strategic ambitions.
A former Army officer explains how the 'Collusivity' works below
1. The Pahalgam Attack: A Carefully Calibrated Bait
The terrorists who struck Pahalgam weren’t just trying to inflict casualties.
The timing, the method — everything suggested a bigger intent.
China knew exactly what India’s response would be:
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Swift retaliation
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Air-force–led punitive strikes
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Deep targeting of terror infrastructure
India was in a more reactive but ready mode, and Beijing wanted to observe how the IAF executes long-range strikes under pressure.
2. A War Fought in the Beyond-Visual-Range (BVR) Spectrum
China expected India to leverage:
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Long-range standoff weapons
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Precision-guided munitions
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Deep-penetration strike formations
And that’s exactly what happened.
For China, this wasn’t just a local conflict — it was a live testbed.
An opportunity to watch Indian BVR warfare doctrine in action from a safe distance.
And to test their own tech through a disposable proxy.
3. China Used Space-Based Surveillance to Track Everything
In the 4–5 days leading up to the main operations, the IAF and Indian armed forces conducted intensive day-and-night pre-strike manoeuvres.
Guess who was watching from above?
China’s space frontier — ISR satellites, radar imaging platforms, electronic sniffers — continuously monitored the build-up and beamed the data to Pakistan.
India was fighting Pakistan.
But China was studying India.
4. The AwACS–PL15 Incident & China’s Disinformation War
There’s now enough indication (including hints in US defense assessments) that China used:
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A Pakistani AWACS platform
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PL-15 long-range air-to-air missiles
…to attempt a hit on a Rafale.
Not a shootdown — a hit attempt for telemetry and data.
Why?
To manufacture a global disinformation campaign:
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Undermine Rafale’s credibility
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Discredit India’s air-power edge
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Push China’s JF-series fighters in global markets
This is classic information warfare — and Pakistan played the obedient messenger boy.
5. India’s Air Defence Activation Gave China Clues
The moment India activated:
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Air Defence Radars
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Integrated Air Command & Control Systems
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Electronic Warfare grids
…they generated electromagnetic signatures.
Every radar, every jammer, every response pattern becomes data.
China is going to study, extrapolate, simulate, and prepare counters for the northern front.
This was free intelligence for them - paid for by Pakistan’s skin in the game.
6. China Learned the Most From BrahMos
Perhaps the biggest shock for China was watching BrahMos do exactly what it was designed to do:
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Evade layered air defences
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Fool surveillance net
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Penetrate hardened targets
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Strike with precision
The PLA now has new grudging respect for Indian naval posture as well.
How the Navy deployed, how it deterred, and how it signals its doctrine in the Indo-Pacific — all went straight into Chinese analysis systems.
So What Did China Actually Gain From This Proxy War?
✔ Understanding Indian Wartime Tactics & Mobilisation
How fast we surge, where we position assets, how strike packages are formed.
✔ Insights Into Indian Countermeasures
Especially how our attack systems evade radar and spoof enemy sensors.
✔ Real-world Testing of Chinese BVR Systems
Including their 2-way data-linked missile guidance — something they desperately wanted to validate against advanced Western jets like the Rafale.
✔ A Chance to Map India’s Air-Defence Electromagnetic Signature
Critical for planning future operations along the northern borders.
✔ Data on BrahMos and Indian Naval Doctrine
Goldmine-level intelligence for their planners.
Final Thoughts
Op Sindoor wasn’t just India vs Pakistan.
It was India vs China — with Pakistan as a convenient expendable proxy.
The PLA didn’t need to fight.
It just needed Pakistan to poke India hard enough to trigger a predictable reaction.
Everything else — data, telemetry, patterns, doctrine — flowed naturally.
And while India won tactically, China walked away with valuable strategic insights.
The next round won’t look like the last — because Beijing now knows more about how we fight than ever before.
