New Delhi is more likely to take ‘unilateral countermeasures’ as routine activities are increasingly framed as threats, researcher says
2-MIN READ2-MINFan ChenPublished: 2:34pm, 24 Aug 2026Routine Chinese activities are increasingly being framed as threats by Indian intelligence agencies, raising the risk of New Delhi miscalculating and taking “unilateral countermeasures” against Beijing, a Chinese academic has warned.
Zhao made the remarks in a paper analysing India’s intelligence operations focused on China from 2020 to 2026. It was published on July 31 in the Chinese-language Journal of Intelligence, run by the Shaanxi Institute of Science and Technology Information.
That confrontation in the Galwan Valley killed 20 Indian and four Chinese troops, plunging relations between the two nations to a historic low.
Zhao said India had broadened its intelligence-gathering toolkit in recent years, using space-based reconnaissance, drone surveillance and cyber intelligence to build a multi-agency network against China.
