NEW DELHI: Pakistan defence minister Khawaja Asif on Thursday admitted that China was sharing intelligence inputs on India with Islamabad following Operation Sindoor and the heightened tensions that ensued.In an interview with Arab News, Asif said it was common for friendly nations to share intelligence gathered via satellites or other means and “China also has disputes with India”.

“These days, countries that are close to each other do share intelligence. It’s very normal if we are sharing any information we have,” Asif said.“It’s very normal if we are sharing any information that could pose a threat to us or the Chinese, because the Chinese also have issues with India. So I think it’s very natural to share intelligence gathered through satellites or other means,” he added.The defence minister also stated that Pakistan has remained on high alert following the recent “short conflict” with India.“Pakistan, since our conflict or this short war with India, has been on alert. We have not lowered our guards. I can confirm that we’ve maintained this alert status for over a month now,” Asif said.“The conflict is over, there is a ceasefire, and we hope things remain calm,” he added.This comes more than a month after India and Pakistan agreed to an immediate ceasefire following escalated cross-border tensions in the wake of the Pahalgam attack and Operation Sindoor.While Pakistan accepted the ceasefire without conditions, India has continued to enforce several punitive measures against its neighbour.The ceasefire resulted from direct engagement between Indian and Pakistani officials, with Islamabad agreeing to terms with “no preconditions, no postconditions, and no links to other issues.”