” Future Wars: A Case Study of Pakistan and India ” – Pakistan House holds Webinar with International Experts

Islamabad; 25 Feb 2021 – Pakistan House, Islamabad based think tank organized One Day International Webinar on Future Wars: A Case Study of Pakistan and India on 23rd, February, 2021. Panel and experts from different countries shared their views and analysis on the subject. The organizers discussed what states plan for future wars? What would be the way to understand wars? & what is the future of Pakistan India in terms of War.

Director General Pakistan House Mohammad Athar Javed was the host while Chief Guest was General Phil Jones. Panel consisted of  Mr. Justin Bronk, Dr. Adil Sultan, Dr. Ahmad Khan and Lt General Khalid Rabbani.

Mohammad Ather Javed, in his introductory remarks noted that future war is almost here: battles fought in cyberspace biologically enhanced soldiers autonomous systems that can process information and strike violently before a human being can blink. Technology took the wars to another level and that will cause more disastrous results. The evolving, complex world of conflict and technology demands that we pay more attention to the issues that are or can  confront us, before it is too late to control them.

General Phil Jones (retd.), former Chief of Staff NATO (UK), Chairman Army Benevolent Fund, UK-International Security Advisor said ” Technology has immense potential to bring profound changes in contemporary world. There is a difference between technological innovation and generational wars because even today soldiers are being seeing carrying rifles. There is no doubt that warfare in changing. The competition between Pakistan and India on national capabilities have been intense and will continue to be intense. This intense competition can become a battle and a struggle but not war. The competition is to erode the economic and political tensions along with ensuring political and social cohesion. Social media is a trend that can cause a stir in no time and fake news is a potential weapon while being sitting below the recognizable threshold. It is also of great important that whoever controls the space, controls land. Cyber domain is another trend of carrying out organized crime against nation. Artificial intelligence has become a buzzer of today. AI is already being weaponized, a major strategic activity to turn human activities into automation. In a decade. AI will be unimaginably strong and powerful. AI demands national strategy, not just national security.”

Mr. Justin Bronk, Research Fellow, Airpower & Technology, Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), UK shared “The future of warfare is changing with every passing day. China is now producing affordable, small and easy to carry weapons that allow precision and in direct and indirect attacks. The divergence is increasing in contemporary world. Weapons with supersonic and hypersonic speed are being though to use to increase precision of attack that can be carried out against command centers, fuel dumps and storages. But weapons that can carry out such effect are often expensive and not many of those can be produced. Noe the attention has been diverged to technology that can ensure the carrying of small yet precise weapons via aircraft carries. Small tech based weapons are easy to carry and require less expense. India can develop superiority in terms of technology against Pakistan but this will take a lot of time. For now, point-defence system can be improved. Missile and ballistic weapons can still hit a target if there are trees or mountains in the way but laser cannot be as precious if blocked by mountains. The real revolution in defence system is the microwave weapon system but for that more power is required. Cyber, despite being the slowest, is still a powerful and dangerous enabler.”

Dr. Adil Sultan, Acting Dean and HoD, Department of Aerospace Science and Strategic Studies (DASSS) was of the view “Prediction on future war is very difficult it could change in seconds, in the previous years the nature of war has been changed. Wars always lead to human loss and economic loss that deeply affect the state. The dispute between and Pakistan and India is old enough, India has developed its military capabilities more in number and rapidly in comparison to Pakistan. In 2004 India started a cold war doctrine. From the start, India constantly blames Pakistan for all the incidents that happen within the border of India recently the Pulwama attack is one of the biggest examples. Indian aircraft were shot down within the Pakistani territory. India had developed multiple ballistic missile systems with the collaboration of the United States to dominate its power in the region. India also invested in hypersonic missiles system and they are more deadly and harmful for the region. Hybrid Warfare is a term that has enjoyed significant currency in recent years. Its early advocates were keen to assert that the use of new technologies, new clandestine methods, or the actions of new actors, operating below the thresholds that could define armed conflict, was a hybrid or blend of insurgency and conventional warfare.”

Dr. Ahmad Khan, former visiting fellow, Atlantic Council, and a renowned researcher, author, Islamabad said “The 21st century is all about the development of weapons and the advancement of wars. A state needs to preserve its supreme national interests. The Indian weapon system is a threat to Pakistan’s national security and Pakistan will do its best to maintain its position in the region. Indian military doctrine that mainly focuses on space power facilitates the Indian military and took them one step ahead. On 27 March 2019, India tested an anti-satellite weapon during an operation code-named Mission Shakti. The target of the test was a satellite present in a low Earth orbit, which was hit with a kinetic kill vehicle. India has a land war force doctrine that has continuous surveillance through space, microsatellites are also working in Indian space with more accurate and advanced results. India successfully test-fired Agni V, with a strike range of more than 5,000 km on 19 April 2012, claiming entry into the ICBM club. India uses its Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), the IRNSS is a constellation of seven satellites that will provide information service to Indian users. In addition to terrestrial and aerial as well as naval navigation, the system is also used for the Indian air force. India has a wide range of 21 different satellites. With the benefits of high accuracy IRNSS, India does not require to rely on a global positioning satellite system. The Indian Ballistic Missile Defence Program is an initiative to develop and deploy a multi-layered ballistic missile defense system to protect India from ballistic missile attacks.

Lt General Khalid Rabbani (retd.) HI (M), former 11 Corps Commander (Peshawar), member advisory board of Pakistan House summed up the discussion as  “I would like to thank all our speakers and participants. Military is one of the most difficult institution to change. Pakistan and India are already in a state of war. There are fields where Pakistan and India would like to outshine each other. Any nation will not be able to survive if it leaves behind Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cyber advancement. Soldiers will always be required even in AI world. AI cannot take over human activities in its entirety. It will be a blended approach. Self-reliance is the answer for any State to equip and train itself with AI.”