NEW DELHI (PTI): India's military preparedness must be of very high order and it should be ready to confront short and intense conflicts as well as long duration wars, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan has said amid the dragging border row with China in eastern Ladakh.

In an address at an event on Wednesday, Gen. Chauhan also identified operational preparedness, modernisation of the armed forces, transformation and indigenisation of military hardware as key pillars to boost national security.

"In the most violent decade since World War II, there is a growing propensity amongst nations to use force to contain conflicts," he said.

"The growing uncertainty and insecurity is leading nations to renew their national security strategy and increase expenditure on defence," he noted, according to the Defence Ministry.

The Chief of Defence Staff was addressing a conclave for foreign service attaches (FSAs) hosted by the Defence Intelligence Agency of headquarters Integrated Defence Staff.

"Our operational preparedness has to be of very high order," he said. "We got to be prepared for short and intense conflicts to a long duration kind of a war," he said.

India has been significantly enhancing combat capabilities, especially along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China following the eastern Ladakh border row.

Indian and Chinese militaries have been locked in a standoff since May 2020 and a full resolution of the border row has not yet been achieved though the two sides have disengaged from a number of friction points.

The ties between the two countries nosedived significantly following the fierce clash in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in decades.

India has been maintaining that its ties with China cannot be normal unless there is peace in the border areas.

In his remarks, Gen Chauhan also emphasised the significance of data centric warfare and the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in revolutionising warfare.

The CDS also gave an insight into India's Atmanirbharta (self-reliance) in defence capability development and strategic autonomy.

Gen Chauhan said that India has attained the position of 'Vishwa Mitra' (friend of the world) in the global order.

"The world is at a pivotal moment in history. We all are at the centre of it. India sees the world as a global village – 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' (the world is one family). It (India) understands its participative role in the larger good of the world," he said.

Director General of Defence Intelligence Agency Lt Gen DS Rana apprised the FSAs that India's defence diplomacy was expanding steadily in terms of the nature of activities as well as geographic coverage.

He highlighted the vision of Atmanirbharta and indigenisation in defence and implored upon FSAs to gain first-hand experience in modernisation programmes.