Washington: The American intelligence community told lawmakers that it apprehends increased tension between India and Pakistan and India and China with the possibility of a conflict between them.
It also noted that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India is more likely than in the past to respond with military force to Pakistani provocations.
This assessment forms part of the annual threat assessment of the US intelligence community that was submitted to the US Congress by the Office of Director of National Intelligence during a Congressional hearing.
While India and China have engaged in bilateral border talks and resolved border points, relations will remain strained in the wake of the countriesā lethal clash in 2020, the most serious in decades, said the report.
The expanded military postures by both India and China along the disputed border elevate the risk of armed confrontation between two nuclear powers that might involve direct threats to US persons and interests, and calls for US intervention. Previous standoffs have demonstrated that persistent low-level friction on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) has the potential to escalate swiftly, it said.