The recent conflict between India and Pakistan is prompting a reassessment of Chinese weapons, challenging long-held perceptions of their inferiority to Western arms and sparking concern in places wary of Beijing.
Pakistan hailed the use of its Chinese J-10Cs to shoot down five Indian fighters, including French-made Rafale aircraft, last week in response to Indian military strikes. Although the reports haven¡¯t been confirmed, and India hasn¡¯t commented, the jet¡¯s maker saw its market capitalization soar by over 55 billion yuan ($7.6 billion), or more than a fourth, by the end of last week.
Hu Xijin, the ex-editor-in-chief of China¡¯s nationalist tabloid Global Times, warned on social media that if Pakistan¡¯s successful strikes were true, Taiwan should feel ¡°even more scared.¡± Beijing sees the self-ruled democracy as its own, and reserves the right to use military force to bring it under control.
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