'We will tear you to pieces': Indian general warns Erdogan about pact with Saudi Arabia, Pakistan
Retired Maj.-Gen. Gagan Deep Bakshi says India needs Iran as a counterweight to Pakistan and will not sacrifice its interests to accommodate Israel.
AUGUST 20, 2026 11:47
Retired Indian Maj.-Gen. Gagan Deep Bakshi warned that the
growing alignment among Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan could pose a strategic threat to India, while stressing that New Delhi would not sacrifice its ties with Iran to accommodate Israel’s security concerns.
Speaking to the New Delhi-based network, Republic World, Bakshi argued that the emergence of what he calls a "Sunni NATO" in the Middle East is a source of strategic concern for India.
At the same time, he sent a clear message to Israel: The
alliance between the two countries is important, but New Delhi will not give up its interests with Iran simply because of the war between Jerusalem and Tehran.
According to Bakshi, the agreement that took shape in Mecca among Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan has created a new regional reality from India's perspective. "A Sunni NATO comprising Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan has been established in the Middle East, in Mecca, and that is a serious cause for concern," he said.
Bakshi stressed that, from India's perspective, Shi'ite Iran serves as an important counterweight to Pakistan.
Iran as a counterweight to Pakistan
"We very much need Shi'ite Iran to be on our side because Pakistan is our primary security headache. China may be the main threat, but together with it, Pakistan is our biggest security headache," he said.
Bakshi compared the threat Iran represents in Israel's eyes with that posed by Pakistan from India's perspective.
"Iran does not have even a single nuclear bomb, and yet it is perceived as an existential threat to Israel. And what about Pakistan? A fundamentalist, jihadist Islamic state that possesses 180 nuclear warheads," he claimed.
He added that India had not seen Israel display similar concern over Pakistan's nuclear arsenal.
"We have not seen Israel losing sleep over the bombs in Pakistan's hands because they are considered a threat only to India," he said.
According to Bakshi, the rapprochement between Ankara and Islamabad is not merely theoretical. He cited Turkish assistance to Pakistan during
Operation Sindoor, claiming that Turkey supplied it with nearly 1,000 unmanned aerial vehicles and helped operate them.
"This was already a 'Sunni NATO,' with or without an agreement. Turkey and Pakistan are already in an undeclared practical alliance," he said.
Bakshi also noted that during the confrontation, Turkey sent a warship to the port of Karachi, arguing that this was another expression of the close security ties between the two countries.
"Turkey has the largest army in NATO," he said, while questioning its ability to intervene directly in a war between India and Pakistan because of the geographical distance.
According to Bakshi, any Turkish force attempting to come to Pakistan's aid would have to travel through the Mediterranean Sea and the Arabian Sea.
"The Indian Navy can tear apart any Turkish armada that tries to come to Pakistan's aid," he said.
India will not sacrifice its interests with Iran
A central part of Bakshi's remarks was directed squarely at Israel. He stressed that India views Israel as a friend, but would not agree to subordinate its own interests to Israeli needs, particularly when it comes to Iran.
"I am afraid that at some point Israel will also have to be sensitive to Indian concerns," he said. "We are not the 51st state of the United States, and for that matter we are also not an appendage or client state of Israel. We are friends, certainly. But vassals? No, sir."
"You cannot simply whistle and make our senior leaders go here and there, and ask us to sacrifice our interests," he said.
Bakshi specifically addressed possible pressure on India to distance itself from Iran because of the war.
"You cannot tell us: Throw Iran away because you are at war with it. When it comes to Iran, you cannot ask us to sacrifice our interests."
According to Bakshi,
relations with Iran are vital to India economically and geostrategically as well. He pointed to the possibility of purchasing Iranian oil at low prices, refining it at Indian refineries, and subsequently exporting the products to other markets.
Beyond that, he stressed Iran's importance as an overland route for India.
"Iran provides India with the land bridge to Central Asia and the land bridge to Afghanistan, and these are of vital importance to us."
India cannot afford to give up those routes because of the war between Israel and Iran, he said.
"We cannot close these land routes because Israel is at war with Iran."
Bakshi concluded that the friendship between India and Israel remains important, but that from New Delhi's perspective, it has clear limits when major security and economic interests are at stake. Against the backdrop of growing ties between Turkey and Pakistan, and Indian concerns over a broader Sunni alliance, he believes that India's relationship with Iran is becoming more important, not less.
Retired Maj.-Gen. Gagan Deep Bakshi says India needs Iran as a counterweight to Pakistan and will not sacrifice its interests to accommodate Israel.
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