Pakistan Army Starts Process To Set Up Rocket Force Command After Op Sindoor Losses

Last Updated:January 12, 2026, 20:40 IST

Pakistan's military leadership discussed the Rocket Force Command in December, pitching it as a high-tech formation after losses during Operation Sindoor.

Pakistan Army Chief Asim Munir-led Corps Commanders Conference approved the structure of the new force last month. (AP/FIle)

The Pakistani Army has begun the process of setting up a new Rocket Force Command, a new force to boost long-range strike capabilities after its setback during Operation Sindoor in May 2025.

The Asim Munir-led Corps Commanders Conference approved the structure of the new force last month, and its formalisation is expected soon, intelligence sources told CNN-News18. Pakistan’s military leadership discussed the Rocket Force Command in December, pitching it as a high-tech formation after losses during Operation Sindoor.

The command, which follows in the footsteps of China’s Rocket Force, is likely to be headed by a three-star or a two-star Pakistani Army officer. The Chinese military’s Rocket Force is responsible for its land-based nuclear and conventional missiles.

India launched Operation Sindoor to target terror hideouts in Pakistan in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack in April 2025. In response, Pakistan launched drones, loitering munitions, fighter jets as well as missiles as part of its so-called ‘Operation Bunyan-un-Marsoos’.

However, most of the Pakistani attacks were intercepted by India’s alert forces and an impregnable air defence system, including one missile that was targeted at New Delhi. India also launched precision airstrikes on Pakistan Air Force bases and shot down several fighter jets during the four-day hostilities.

India Planning A Rocket Force?

Meanwhile, India has also been deliberating on setting up a separate Rocket Force, although it has not been formalised yet, intelligence sources told CNN-News18.

India’s Strategic Forces Command currently controls nuclear weapons, while the services handle conventional arms. The push for a new force on long-range capabilities came amid recent wars and conflicts across the world, where long-range missiles and rockets have played a decisive role on the battlefield.

Earlier, Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan stressed the need to modernise the weapon systems in the armed forces, citing the changing nature of modern warfare. He noted that a wide range of emerging technologies – such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, hypersonics, advanced materials, robotics and edge computing – are reshaping how wars are fought.

News world Pakistan Army Starts Process To Set Up Rocket Force Command After Op Sindoor Losses

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