ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s air chief said on Friday the country’s air force had undertaken “comprehensive modernization and indigenization” in recent years, as he addressed a ceremony at Air Headquarters to mark seven years since an aerial confrontation with India.

Operation Swift Retort was launched on Feb. 27, 2019, a day after India attempted airstrikes inside Pakistan following a suicide bombing in Indian-administered Kashmir that killed at least 40 Indian paramilitary troops.

Pakistan responded with aerial strikes across the Line of Control and shot down an Indian fighter jet in a subsequent dogfight, capturing one pilot who was later returned in what Islamabad called a gesture of de-escalation.

“PAF has pursued comprehensive modernization and indigenization to transition into a Next Generation Air Force,” Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu said, according to a statement circulated by the military’s media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations.

He added that the force had recalibrated its operational doctrine and rapidly inducted advanced combat and support capabilities, including indigenously developed unmanned systems, electronic warfare, space and cyber assets, establishing what he described as a “home-grown multi-domain kill chain.”

Sidhu said Pakistan remained committed to peace but would respond decisively to violations of its sovereignty.

“Pakistan is a responsible country which desires peace with honor,” he continued.

The remarks come amid renewed security tensions on Pakistan’s western frontier.

Islamabad earlier this week launched airstrikes inside Afghanistan targeting what it described as hideouts of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Daesh militants. Afghan authorities condemned the strikes and subsequently launched their own military response that led to fierce clashes between the two sides overnight.

Pakistan has frequently accused Kabul of allowing militant groups to use Afghan territory to carry out cross-border attacks on Pakistani civilians and security forces, an allegation denied by Afghan officials.

Pakistani authorities said earlier in the day small drones launched from the Afghan side were intercepted and brought down by the country’s air defense systems.

Sidhu said the PAF would continue to maintain a vigilant yet responsible defense posture to safeguard national sovereignty.