In a rare and candid admission, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has acknowledged that India’s recent BrahMos missile strikes disrupted a planned Pakistani military operation, effectively altering the course of the conflict before it could escalate further.
Speaking during a trilateral summit involving Pakistan, Türkiye, and Azerbaijan, Sharif revealed that the Pakistani military had intended to launch a strategic response to Indian military actions. However, the Indian Armed Forces launched missile attacks ahead of schedule, targeting several critical locations across Pakistan and rendering the planned counteroffensive ineffective.
Sharif stated that the Pakistani leadership had agreed on a measured retaliation, set for the early hours of May 10. However, Indian missile strikes, carried out late on May 9, reportedly hit key military installations, including the airport in Rawalpindi and several airbases, catching Pakistan off guard.
The Indian military operation, reportedly named Operation Sindoor, was initiated in response to a deadly terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir on April 22, which resulted in significant casualties. As part of the retaliation, India conducted precision strikes on what it described as terrorist infrastructure in Pakistani-controlled regions. These actions were followed by additional missile strikes aimed at airbases, radar systems, and weapon storage facilities.
According to reports, India’s use of the BrahMos missile—renowned for its speed, accuracy, and capability to penetrate defenses—was central to the success of the operation. The missiles struck multiple Pakistani military targets in rapid succession, severely disrupting command and control systems and damaging infrastructure critical to the country’s planned military action.
This public admission by Prime Minister Sharif marks a significant shift in Pakistan’s narrative, especially after initial claims of a robust defensive posture. The disclosure suggests that India’s strategic use of advanced missile technology was instrumental in averting a broader military escalation between the two nuclear-armed nations.
Indian authorities have maintained that the strikes were necessary to safeguard national security and prevent further cross-border threats. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh reaffirmed that any future engagement with Pakistan would center exclusively on counterterrorism efforts and the resolution of the Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir issue.
The revelation has added new complexity to an already fragile security environment in South Asia. Analysts suggest that Sharif’s comments reflect both the growing military asymmetry between the two nations and the increasing pressure on Islamabad to reassess its defense strategy.
As international stakeholders watch the situation closely, the episode underscores the urgency for diplomatic channels to remain open. The incident also highlights the evolving nature of modern warfare, where precision weapons and swift preemptive action can significantly shift geopolitical outcomes.
With tensions still simmering, the focus now shifts to whether this moment of transparency from Pakistan’s leadership could pave the way for de-escalation—or signal a new era of strategic competition in the region.
