Pakistan condemns Rajnath Singh’s threats, warns India against aggression
Reaffirms Kashmir dispute must be resolved in line with UN resolutions
Islamabad: Pakistan has strongly condemned Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s “provocative remarks” threatening military aggression against Islamabad, warning that such rhetoric reflects the neighbouring country’s “hegemonistic mindset” and poses a risk to regional peace and stability.
According to Kashmir Media Service, Pakistan’s Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson Sajjad Haider Khan speaking during his weekly press briefing in Islamabad on Friday also reiterated that Jammu and Kashmir remains an internationally recognised disputed territory whose final status must be determined in accordance with relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions and the wishes of the Kashmiri people.
Sajjad Haider Khan said, “Pakistan rejects and condemns the Indian defence minister’s provocative remarks entailing a threat of Indian aggression against Pakistan. Such reckless statements reflect India’s hegemonistic mindset and the risk its belligerent posture poses to regional peace and stability in South Asia.”
The FO spokesperson’s remarks came after Rajnath Singh said that any “fresh terrorist activity from across the border would invite a strike even bigger than the last time”.
Pakistan and India went to war in May last year after India launched an unprovoked attack on Pakistan following the Pahalgam incident in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK). Pakistan responded by downing eight Indian fighter jets, including three Rafales. The war between the two nuclear-armed nations ended on May 10 with a ceasefire agreement brokered by the United States.
“We wish to remind India of the consequences of its military aggression in May last year, when Pakistan demonstrated both its capability and resolve to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity and gave a befitting response and reply to Indian aggression,” he said.
He stressed that there should be “no ambiguity” that Pakistan remained fully prepared to safeguard its “sovereignty and territorial integrity” against any “ill-advised aggression”.
Haider said Pakistan’s “restraint and commitment to peace” should not be mistaken for weakness, warning that any aggression would be met with a “forceful response”.
“India should draw an appropriate lesson from last year’s experience and abandon its belligerent posture and dangerous rhetoric and act with responsibility for lasting peace in the region,” he said.
Responding to a question about the Kashmir dispute, the FO spokesperson said that said India’s August 5, 2019, actions revoking the special status of Jammu and Kashmir were “illegal and void”.
He added that the move could not alter the fact that Kashmir remained an internationally recognised disputed territory, whose final status must be determined in accordance with relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the wishes of the Kashmiri people.
