Unsettled borders continue to engage us, deterrence instruments needed: Army Chief

Legacy challenges of unsettled borders continue to engage the Army and it is essential to possess strategic deterrence instruments, Army Chief General Manoj Pande said Wednesday...

Therefore, the first imperative that comes across is that possession of strategic deterrence instruments is essential, the Army Chief said, adding: Our prolonged commitment in counter insurgency operations should not dull our conventional response preparedness...

He said the relevance of hard power with land continuing to be the decisive domain of warfare and that short, swift war may be a flawed assumption are key lessons from the war which throws the need for India to be prepared for a full spectrum conflict, for a prolonged duration...

The need for dedicated strategies to win the war of narratives, the need to fight grey zone warfare are other lessons from the war, he said, adding that proliferation of drones, loiter munitions, advanced VSHORADS and manned-unmanned system have proved that air, no longer remains the exclusive preserve of manned aircraft..

Gen Pande highlighted the need to find the right balance between conventional and niche capabilities in defence, adding that while possession of rugged conventional systems is a need for the Indian military theatre and terrains, it is imperative to possess counter niche capabilities as well..

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