India's Counter-Terrorism Doctrine
Evolution Since Uri to Sindoor
India's response to cross-border terrorism has undergone a visible doctrinal evolution over three major episodes: the 2016 surgical strikes (after Uri attack), the 2019 Balakot airstrikes (after Pulwama attack), and the 2025 Operation Sindoor. Each successive response escalated the scale, reach, and acknowledgment of India's military action. The 2016 strikes targeted launch pads across the Line of Control without crossing into Pakistan proper; the 2019 Balakot strikes crossed the LoC but hit targets in Pakistan-administered territory; Operation Sindoor for the first time crossed the international boundary into Pakistan's settled territory. This calibrated escalation signals a new deterrence posture — that India will respond to terrorist attacks with military force proportionate to the attack, and will cross previously respected geographical thresholds.
- 2016 Surgical Strikes: Cross-LoC strikes on launch pads (post-Uri attack, September 2016).
- 2019 Balakot Airstrikes: IAF strike on Jaish-e-Mohammed training camp in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (post-Pulwama, February 2019).
- 2025 Operation Sindoor: Multi-domain strikes across the international boundary into Pakistan (post-Pahalgam, May 2025).
- Doctrine shift: From "no first use of force across IB" to "calibrated cross-IB response to state-sponsored terrorism."
- Legal basis: India does not invoke Article 51 of the UN Charter (right to self-defence) publicly, but the strikes are grounded in the customary international law principle of proportionate self-defence against non-state actors operating with state support.
● Tracked since April 02, 2026 · last seen May 08, 2026 · updates as the daily brief publishes