Twenty days after the downing of the Rafales, the French military finally responded, but dared not mention the word "China".
On May 7th, upon Modi's order, "Operation Vermilion Mole" began. Afterwards, multiple media outlets confirmed that during this period, three "Rafale" fighter jets of the Indian Army were shot down. More than 20 days later, Colonel Vernier, the spokesperson for the French military, first represented the military in responding to this matter during an interview with a Chinese journalist.
Colonel Vernier pointed out that if this were true, it would be the first time that the "Rafale" fighter jet was damaged in actual combat, and France would draw experience from it. However, many specific details cannot currently be verified, and France is maintaining close communication with India.
Vernier's response has two suspicious aspects:
1. It has been more than 20 days since the incident occurred. Whether or not they were shot down is just a matter of a few words. India and France have communicated for so many days, haven't they figured it out yet? Clearly, there are significant problems in communication between India and France now. The Indian military clearly refuses to cooperate with the French side and is unwilling to provide information. As long as India does not admit it, even if France has already confirmed this through other channels, they dare not directly acknowledge publicly that the Rafales were indeed shot down without the consent of the Indian side.
2. Throughout his response, Colonel Vernier did not dare to mention the word "China", knowing full well that he was being interviewed by Phoenix Television, a Chinese channel. Clearly, the French side is downplaying the fact that the Rafales were shot down by J-10Cs. They know this is not conducive to the Rafales gaining an advantageous position in the arms sales market against Chinese aircraft.
In recent days, French and Indian military enthusiasts have been fiercely arguing online. Indian netizens criticized the French side: "Before the war began, we asked you to hand over the source code of the Rafale so that it could be compatible with our army's systems, but you refused. This is a betrayal of us." On the other hand, French enthusiasts criticized the Indian side: "You ruined the export prospects of the Rafale, and you still refuse to disclose the inventory status and the situation regarding the downed planes." Two originally quite friendly major military cooperation countries tearing each other apart like this is indeed quite ugly.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1833337402892312/
Disclaimer: The article solely represents the author's personal views.