New Delhi, Sept. 27 -- India is working towards developing sixth-generation fighter jets, and while there will be challenges along this path, the resolve remains unwavering, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Sunday, asserting that the country is building capabilities with the warfare of the next two decades in mind.
In a veiled message to Pakistan, Singh also said that as long as "our neighbouring country persists with a state policy of terrorism, India remains fully free to carry out all forms of strikes against it".
Singh was addressing a session at the NDTV Defence Summit, which was also attended by Army Chief General Dhiraj Seth and other senior officers of the armed forces.
"Today we are in the era of fifth-generation warfare, where, along with land, water and air, cyber, space and the human mind have also become new battlefields. The supply chains are also becoming a new ground of geopolitical conflict. New technologies like drones, artificial intelligence, quantum and hypersonic are changing the shape of the entire defence sector," he said.
The defence minister underlined that today's warfare is not merely a matter of soldier versus soldier; rather, it spans multiple domains, including electronic warfare, information warfare, AI, drones, autonomous systems and precision weapons.
"We recognise that the future landscape of security and the battlefield will be technology-driven. So the nation that leads in technology will hold an advantage on the battlefield. That is why we have emphasised making India's defence strategy future-ready; our focus today extends beyond the weapons of the present," he said.
"We are building capabilities with the warfare of the next 10 to 20-25 years in mind. We want India not merely to import technology, but to define it," Singh said.
On India's position in the world order, Singh said, "India is neither a status quoist power nor a revisionist power. I believe we are a civilisational power.
"The objective of our rise is not to leave another country behind or to dismantle the existing order; rather, it is about collective and inclusive growth. Our goal is - rise without rupture, positive change without conflict," Singh emphasised.
"We envision a world where India advances, and the entire world moves forward alongside us," he added.
The minister underlined that India believes in peace and does not seek to occupy the territory of any country.
"However, peace should not be mistaken for weakness," Singh said.
"We seek global stability, but not at the cost of our strategic autonomy. We are firmly committed to safeguarding our security and strategic autonomy when threatened," he said.
India believes in dialogue. However, if a country fuels terrorism against India, the "scope for dialogue ceases to exist", the defence minister said.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.