Operation Sindoor marked India's 'tech referendum', Pakistan lost as China's proxy: John Spencer

Operation Sindoor

Operation Sindoor not only demonstrated India's military superiority over Pakistan, it also marked an unmissable technological referendum in favour of Delhi, according to world’s leading military expert John Spencer.

While New Delhi fought and won as a sovereign military power, Pakistan fought and lost as a proxy of China, opined Spencer, a retired United States Army officer, researcher of urban warfare, and author. The face-off acted as a perfect strategic debut of a sovereign arsenal built under the twin doctrines of Make in India and Atmanirbhar Bharat.

In an article on X, the defence expert said that Operation Sindoor witnessed a face-off between India’s indigenous potential against Islamabad's Chinese military platforms and India’s victory amounted to a referendum on the technological competition.

"Operation Sindoor pitted India’s indigenously developed weapons systems against Chinese-supplied platforms fielded by Pakistan. And India didn’t just win on the battlefield—it won the technology referendum. What unfolded was not just retaliation, but the strategic debut of a sovereign arsenal built under the twin doctrines of Make in India and Atmanirbhar Bharat," said  Spencer.

Pak's reliance on foreign made platforms vs India's indigenous pitch

Spencer pointed out that in the four-day conflict, Pakistan relied heavily on foreign-made platforms, ranging from China’s JF-17 fighter planes, US F-16s, and Turkish drones to Chinese HQ-9 air defence systems, which were beaten by Indian indigenous systems, such as BrahMos missiles, Akash and Akashteer air defence systems, and integration of foreign-made fighter planes and air defence systems, such as Rafale fighters, Scalp missiles, and S-400, with Indian systems.

‘Operation Sindoor a full-scale validation of India’s defense transformation under PM Modi’
Spencer said that Operation Sindoor proved to be a “full-scale validation of India’s defense transformation” that began with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative in 2014 and picked up renewed pace in 2020 with the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative, read Spencer's post.

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John Spencer (@SpencerGuard) May 29, 2025

"India fought as a sovereign power—wielding precision tools it designed, built, and deployed with unmatched battlefield control. Pakistan fought as a proxy force, dependent on Chinese hardware that was built for export, not for excellence. When challenged, these systems failed—exposing the strategic hollowness behind Islamabad’s defense posture," remarked Spencer.

He emphasised that the operation served multiple gains for New Delhi. A technology demonstration, a market signal, and a strategic blueprint. India showed the world what self-reliance in modern warfare looks like—and proved that “Atmanirbhar Bharat” works under fire.