Fact Check: India will complain to US if Pak attacks again? Navy Vice Admiral’s video is AI-manipulated

A video of Vice Admiral AN Pramod of the Indian Navy has been circulating in which he allegedly says that India will complain to the US and its President Trump if Pakistan dares to attack India again. Those sharing the video are trying to mock India, claiming that instead of fighting for itself, India will complain and seek assistance from the US.

In the video, Pramod could be heard saying, “We have worked out among three services, this time if Pakistan dares take any action, and Pakistan knows it, what we are going to do. We will complain against Pakistan to the United States of America and President Trump, like we did earlier in Operation Sindoor.”

An X account shared the video with the caption, “India sells itself as a regional superpower, but its Navy Chief’s own words betray that image. If Pakistan attacks, their plan is to involve Trump, not fight back. This isn’t a strategic partnership; it’s dependency in uniform. (sic)” (Archive)

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the claim is false. The viral video is manipulated.

We conducted a keyword search but found no reports of Vice Admiral AN Pramod stating that India will complain to the US if Pakistan attacks India again.

We analysed the video and found notable anomalies beginning at the 0:13-minute timestamp. The audio from this point onward exhibits a tonal variation inconsistent with Pramod’s voice. We also noticed animation artefacts and a sudden acceleration in lip movement when compared to the segment before the 0:13-minute mark, which suggests lip-sync attack, an indication of manipulation to sync lip with audio.

Next, we reviewed the press conference on Operation Sindoor, addressed by officers from the three services of the Indian Armed Forces on May 11. The viral clip was taken from this video. At the 59:19-minute timestamp, the Vice Admiral delivers a brief statement in response to a media question.

He can be heard saying, “I will make a few sentences and leave it for your imagination. First of all, as I have mentioned, we have a quantitative and qualitative edge to deliver a massive blow to our adversary, and we completely dominate the maritime front. The Indian Navy’s action is part of the escalation ladder mechanism, which we have worked out among the three services. This time, if Pakistan dares take any action—and Pakistan knows it—what are we going to do? That’s all.”

This brief statement from the Vice Admiral is a clear warning to Pakistan. We found no reference to the Vice Admiral speaking about taking assistance from the US or mentioning Donald Trump. This confirms that the video has been manipulated with external audio.

Analysis of viral clip using AI detection tools

Finally, we analysed the video and audio separately using Deepfake-O-Meter.

Two detectors indicated a likelihood of AI generation above 50 per cent, while three detectors recorded confidence levels exceeding 90 per cent. For the audio, one detector flagged a likelihood of AI generation with 100 per cent and two with more than 90 per cent.