ISLAMABAD — Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif on Saturday dismissed recent remarks by Indian Air Force (IAF) Chief Air Chief Marshal AP Singh regarding the downing of Pakistani aircraft during May’s border clashes, terming them “implausible” and “ill-timed.”
The Indian air chief had claimed that during “Operation Sindoor,” India destroyed five Pakistani fighter jets and another military aircraft — possibly a surveillance plane — at a range of 300 km, with most kills attributed to the S-400 air defence system. He described it as “the largest ever recorded surface-to-air kill,” drawing applause from an audience of officers, veterans, and defence officials.
Islamabad has consistently denied losing any aircraft in the May 7–10 clashes, during which both nuclear-armed neighbours engaged in their worst military confrontation in decades. Pakistan maintains that it shot down six Indian aircraft — including a French-made Rafale — as well as destroying S-400 batteries, unmanned aircraft, and disabling several airbases.
Taking to X, Asif said it was “ironic” that senior Indian military leaders were being used to “mask the monumental failure” of political decision-makers. He noted that for three months after the clashes, no such claims had been made by India, while Pakistan had immediately presented detailed technical briefings to the global media.
Asif added that independent observers, world leaders, senior Indian politicians, and foreign intelligence assessments had acknowledged the loss of multiple Indian aircraft, including Rafales. “Not a single Pakistani aircraft was hit or destroyed by India,” he asserted.
He challenged India to open its aircraft inventories for independent verification, saying such transparency would “lay bare the reality India seeks to obscure.”
Warning that “wars are not won by falsehoods” but by “moral authority, national resolve, and professional competence,” the minister cautioned that such “comical narratives” for domestic political purposes risked dangerous miscalculations in a nuclearised region.
Reiterating Pakistan’s stance, Asif said that as demonstrated during Operation Bunyanum Marsoos, “every violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity will invite a swift and proportionate response,” and the responsibility for escalation would rest with “leaders who gamble with South Asia’s peace for fleeting political gains.”
