*Beijing/Islamabad, August 10* — China’s former defence attaché in SouthAsia, Cheng Xizhong, has dismissed India’s recent claims of shooting downsix Pakistani aircraft during a conflict in May, calling them“self-amusement” and lacking credibility.
India’s Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh, speaking three months after thehostilities, asserted on Saturday that the Indian Air Force hadsuccessfully shot down five Pakistani fighter jets and one other militaryaircraft. The announcement was India’s first detailed claim about theaerial exchange, which had earlier drawn criticism from both domesticopposition parties and international observers due to India’s own aircraftlosses.
However, Pakistan promptly refuted Singh’s assertions. Defence MinisterKhawaja Asif labelled the claims “belated” and “baseless,” reiteratingPakistan’s long-standing denial that any of its aircraft were lost duringthe incident.
In a statement carried by the Associated Press of Pakistan on Sunday, ChengXizhong weighed in on the controversy. The former Chinese military diplomatcriticized India’s narrative, saying that the allegations “lack strongevidence and have been widely questioned by the international community.”Cheng added that such claims were “comical, implausible and unconvincing.”
“We may call it self-amusement,” he remarked, suggesting that India’sclaims were more for domestic political consumption than grounded inmilitary reality.
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The international community has also shown skepticism toward India’sversion of events. While India had previously faced global coverage overits own aircraft being shot down and a pilot captured and later released byPakistan, no independent verification has emerged supporting the downing ofPakistani aircraft.
The renewed controversy underscores the deep mistrust and ongoinginformation war between the two nuclear-armed neighbours, whose relationsremain strained following several military and diplomatic confrontations inrecent years.