FO’s weekly briefing: India’s belligerence threat to regional peace

Says Delhi warned against making any strategic miscalculation

Pakistan has said that India’s belligerence is a threat to regional peace and security.

“We have cautioned India from making any strategic miscalculation. It appears that India is seeking conflict with Pakistan,” Foreign Office spokesperson Nafees Zakaria said in his weekly press briefing on Thursday.

He said the Indian occupation forces were continuously engaged in ceasefire violations on the LoC and the Working Boundary. “The civilians in villages and populated areas are continuously being targeted from across LoC,” he added.

Zakria added that India had deliberately escalated tension at the LoC and the Working Boundary in order to divert international community’s attention from the grave human rights situation in IOK.



“While we have no desire to escalate the situation, Pakistani armed forces would respond effectively to any unprovoked violations. We have always exercised restraint,” he cautioned.

The spokesperson also said that Pakistan was suffering because of India’s state-sponsored terrorism for over five decades. He said India was using Afghanistan’s soil against Pakistan and was also sabotaging relations between the two countries.

He also clarified that Afghan President Ashraf Ghani did not make any statement suggesting that Pakistan was waging an ‘undeclared war of aggression’ on Afghanistan.

“Afghan President’s address has been uploaded on You Tube in which he has not used the ‘phrase’ you have referred to,” he explained.

Zakria said Afghanistan had been in turmoil for the last 40 years which had created space for terrorists, and those promoting terrorism in the region did not have interest in peace and stability in Afghanistan.



“Their activities, especially of our neighbouring country, promoting state-sponsored terrorism, are detrimental not only to Afghanistan but also to Pakistan. The situation in Afghanistan is a common challenge for both Afghanistan and Pakistan,” he said.

“Therefore, besides measures pertaining to border management, both sides need to closely coordinate with each other in our mutual interest and beware of our detractors who are enemies of Pak-Afghan relations,” he stressed.