In its Worldwide Threat Assessment report for 2025, the US Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) stated that Pakistan regards India as an “existential threat,” while India considers China its “primary adversary” and views Pakistan more as an “ancillary security problem” to be managed.The report highlights Pakistan’s continued military modernisation, including the development of battlefield nuclear weapons aimed at offsetting India’s conventional military advantage. Pakistan is also upgrading its nuclear arsenal and maintaining strict security over its nuclear materials and command systems. The report says that Pakistan, almost certainly is acquiring weapons of mass destruction (WMD)-applicable goods from foreign suppliers and intermediaries.The report states that China remains Pakistan’s main economic and military partner. The two countries conduct multiple joint military exercises every year, including a new air exercise completed in November 2024. Materials and technology supporting Pakistan’s WMD programs are very likely sourced primarily from China, sometimes transshipped through Hong Kong, Singapore, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates. However, the report says that terrorist attacks targeting Chinese workers involved in China-Pakistan Economic Corridor projects have caused friction, with seven Chinese nationals killed in Pakistan in 2024.The report outlines Pakistan military’s key priorities as managing cross-border skirmishes with regional neighbours, responding to rising attacks by Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan and Baloch nationalist militants, conducting counterterrorism operations, and continuing nuclear modernisation. Despite ongoing operations, militants killed more than 2,500 people across Pakistan in 2024.
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