Separately, the total recovery of these largely Chinese-made unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), originating from Pakistan and entering India's Punjab territory and a few in Rajasthan, has seen an about 13 times rise since 2022 in the January-May period.

While China maintains these are research vessels, Indian concerns lie in their potential dual-use capability, particularly activities related to tracking ballistic missiles.

UK Deputy Prime Minister, Oliver Dowden, declared that the UK, along with its international allies, would not hesitate to expose China for its "ongoing patterns of hostile activity."