Beijing sent technical support teams to Pakistan during its war with India last year, China’s official media said.
Zhang Heng, an engineer from state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC)’s Chengdu Aircraft Design and Research Institute, revealed that Chinese personnel were deployed on-site during the four-day war following Operation Sindoor.
Pakistan’s air force operated a Chinese-made Chengdu J-10CE fighter jet, developed by AVIC subsidiaries, according to reports cited by the South China Morning Post.
“It felt inevitable. The aircraft just needed the right opportunity. And when that moment came, it delivered exactly as we knew it would,” Zhang said.
“At the support base, we frequently heard the roar of fighter jets taking off and the constant wail of air-raid sirens,” Zhang said. “By late morning, in May, the temperature was already approaching 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit). It was a real ordeal for us, both mentally and physically.”
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.
Another engineer, Xu Da from the same institute, compared the fighter aircraft to a “child”. “We nurtured it, cared for it, and finally handed it over to the user. And now, it was facing a major test,” Xu said.
Reports earlier claimed that a Chinese-origin fighter jet operated by Pakistan downed at least one French-made Indian aircraft, the Dassault Rafale. The J-10CE is the export variant of China’s J-10C 4.5-generation fighter, equipped with an AESA radar and advanced air-to-air missile systems.
Pakistan is the only known foreign operator, having ordered 36 aircraft along with 250 PL-15 missiles in 2020.
India-Pakistan war 2025
The war in May last year was triggered by a terror attack on tourists in Kashmir on 22 April, 2025. Twenty-six people were killed when terrorists opened fire in Baisaran meadow near Pahalgam. Most of the victims were tourists, along with a local pony operator who was also killed during the attack.
The incident was later linked to cross-border terror networks housed by Pakistan. India, in retaliation, carried out precision strikes across the terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir on May 7, 2025.
Over 100 terrorists were killed in Pakistan, as per the defence ministry. India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty. Pakistan then launched strikes across the border and the fighting lasted barely four days before a ceasefire was agreed upon.
Did China mediate India-Pak 2025 war?
Last year, China’s FM Wang Yi has claimed that Beijing acted as a mediator in the conflict. Speaking at a symposium in Beijing, Wang said China took a balanced approach in several global conflicts, including South Asia.
“To build peace that lasts, we have taken an objective and just stance, and focused on addressing both symptoms and root causes. Following this Chinese approach to settling hotspot issues, we mediated in northern Myanmar, the Iranian nuclear issue, the tensions between Pakistan and India, the issues between Palestine and Israel, and the recent conflict between Cambodia and Thailand,” Wang said.
“In our efforts, there was no interference in the internal affairs of others, no incitement, no biased manipulation, and no selfish gains. There was only sincerity and good faith. Our principles and hard work will stand the test of history.”
India has time and again rejected claims of external mediation, maintaining that the ceasefire following the May conflict was achieved bilaterally.