Despite the Western media’s attempt to equate India and Pakistan in terms of military capability, Islamabad quite literally begged for US intervention after New Delhi struck the Nur Khan air base in the heart of Pakistan with missiles on the morning of May 10, alongside an imminent Indian Navy attack on the Karachi naval port.
That the Modi government chose not to escalate further after the Rawalpindi strike was simply because Pakistan is no match for India.
Pakistan’s capitulation was evident from the frenzied attempts by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to reach his counterparts, S Jaishankar and Ajit Doval, on the morning of May 10.
While the Nur Khan air base was hit hard by Indian missiles in the early hours, Pakistan’s Director General of Military Operations (DGMO), Kashif Abdullah, called his Indian counterpart at 10:38 a.m. the same day, claiming to have intelligence about an imminent BrahMos missile strike on the Karachi naval port. Although the Pakistani DGMO attempted to threaten retaliation, the Indian side remained unfazed and fully battle-ready.
It is understood that when Secretary Rubio conveyed Pakistan’s willingness to agree to a ceasefire, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar firmly yet politely responded that such a proposal would need to come through DGMO channels, as the armed forces were leading operations. India, in the meantime, ignored calls from the Pakistani Foreign Minister and Islamabad’s traditional allies, urging an end to hostilities.
While several Western narratives, including those pushed by French official media, attempted to portray Chinese weaponry as superior to India’s, the reality is that the Modi government was prepared to climb the full escalatory ladder if Pakistan chose that path. India was under no pressure to de-escalate, especially since Pakistan had virtually no viable military targets remaining east of the Indus, following the decapitation of 11 air bases and the complete neutralization of its air defense systems. Team Modi had no intention of striking Balochistan or the Pashtun-dominated Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region. In fact, India had only just begun: its mission objective—to destroy terror infrastructure in Pakistan—was accomplished within 25 minutes on the morning of May 7.
Interestingly, even as French state media tried to undermine its own Rafale fighters used by the Indian Air Force, Indian aerial platforms, missiles, loitering munitions, and drones performed exceptionally well and decisively overwhelmed Pakistan’s armed forces. After the May 10 missile strike, India retained the capability to strike any target within Pakistan, as the latter’s Chinese-supplied air defense systems had either been destroyed or jammed.
India’s decision to call off hostilities stemmed from a strategic assessment: mission objectives had been achieved, and further engagement would only allow Islamabad to play the victim card to the West and China. Simply put, India and Pakistan are not equals, and New Delhi had no interest in further pursuing a military conflict after effectively neutralizing Pakistan’s response capability.
Given the advisory role played by Chinese and Turkish personnel in aiding Pakistan’s aerial warfare strategy, India is expected to take counter-action against all parties who sided with terrorist elements following the Pahalgam massacre. The Modi government is now placing greater emphasis on stand-off weapons, acknowledging that the era of conventional land battles is largely over. With 31 US-made Predator armed drones set to be inducted into the Indian armed forces in 2028, India is also rapidly advancing in the development of high-altitude armed drones and low-cost swarm drones—similar to the Turkish models deployed by Pakistan along the Indian border.
While Pakistan is expected to feel the impact of India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty next month, Operation Sindoor has reinforced a crucial lesson for New Delhi: India stands alone and must build its own comprehensive military capabilities to counter the real adversaries in its neighborhood—and in the West.