Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan graced the Ran Samvad in Mhow, Madhya Pradesh on August 26, Tuesday and said, “India has always stood on the side of peace. We are a peace-loving nation, but don’t get mistaken, we cannot be pacifists. I think peace without power is utopian. I like to state a Latin quote which translates, ‘if you want peace, prepare for war’…” Run Samwad is the first Tri-Services Seminar at Army War College, in Madhya Pradesh’s Dr Ambedkar Nagar.
The CDS General further also emphasised on the need to become Sashastra’ [armed], ‘Suraksit’ [secure] and ‘Aatmanirbhar’ [self-reliant], not only in technology, but also in ideas and in practice. According to the CDS General, there is a need to increase awareness on all fragments of our society on doctrinal and conceptual aspects. Mr Chauhan said that this includes the academic pursuits of how war is fought and practical and actual war fighting techniques and tactics”, as reported in ANI.
India’s relation with neighbouring countries
CDS General’s statements at the Ran Samvad event have been dominating the headlines when India is sharing a tense relation with some of its neighbouring countries, especially Pakistan. These relations were further strained in the light of attack on the 26 civilians at Baisaran valley in Pahalgam, Kashmir. On April 22, 2025, terrorists linked to the terrorist group The Resistance Front had shot dead these civilians. In retaliation to the attack, India had launched a cross-border operation, Operation Sindoor.
What was Operation Sindoor?
In Operation Sindoor, nine targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir were targeted in the early hours of May 07, 2025. Indian Air Force played a crucial role in doing precision strikes against the terrorist infrastructure across Pakistan. Under Operation Mahadev, the security forces eliminated the terrorists involved in the killing of civilians in Pahalgam under Operation Mahadev. These terrorists were Suleman, Afghan, and Jibran. These terrorists were the members of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).
