Pakistan slams Indian defence minister’s war talk

Brands minister's statement as 'admission of guilt', warns of 'befitting response' to any misadventure

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan strongly condemned on Saturday the "provocative" comments made by Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh during a televised interview, branding them as an "admission of guilt."

Islamabad issued a stern warning to New Delhi, cautioning of a befitting response should there be any misadventure against the country.Singh, in an interview with broadcaster CNN News18, declared India's readiness to cross into Pakistani territory to eliminate individuals attempting to flee after engaging in terrorist activities within India.

He stated, "If they run away to Pakistan, we will enter Pakistan to kill them.

"The Indian defence minister's remarks came hot on the heels of The Guardian's damning investigative report, revealing the involvement of India's intelligence agency RAW in orchestrating the murders of at least 20 individuals in Pakistan since 2020.

The report drew upon insights from intelligence officials from both nations and documents shared by Pakistani investigators.

In a statement on Saturday, the Foreign Office said that Pakistan stood resolute in its intent and ability to safeguard its sovereignty against any aggression and that the international community should hold India accountable for its heinous and illegal actions.

“India’s assertion of its preparedness to extra-judiciously execute more civilians, arbitrarily pronounced as ‘terrorists’, inside Pakistan constitutes a clear admission of culpability,” the FO said.

“It is imperative for the international community to hold India accountable for its heinous and illegal actions.”
The statement added that on January 25, Pakistan provided irrefutable evidence of Indian extrajudicial killings and transnational assassinations on Pakistani soil.

It further recalled that in Feb 2019, India received a strong response to aggression and that the move exposed New Delhi's hollow claims of military superiority.“Indian rulers are resorting to hateful rhetoric for electoral gains and this irresponsible behaviour harms regional peace,” the FO said.“Pakistan has always demonstrated its commitment to peace in the region.

However, our desire for peace should not be misconstrued. History attests to Pakistan’s firm resolve and ability to protect and defend itself,” the FO statement said in conclusion.

On Feb 26, 2019, Indian planes violated Pakistani airspace and conducted air strikes inside Pakistani territory.

Responding to the Indian aggression the next day, the Pakistan Air Force shot down two Indian fighter jets and captured Indian pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman. Later, the government decided to release the pilot as a peace gesture.

Meanwhile, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif warned India of a tit-for-tat response, saying New Delhi will have to bear the consequences in case it resorted to any aggression against Islamabad.

Read Pakistanis ‘fed up’ with India rivalry

Asif noted that the fiery rhetoric by Indian ministers these days was merely tactics employed for electioneering in the country. “India's anti-Pakistani statements are aimed at gaining attention from the public.”He stated that India was sponsoring terror activities both inside Pakistan and abroad.

He urged India to exercise caution in making such statements and refrain from taking any actions during the election period that could lead to unfavourable consequences.

In a pun, the defence minister said the return of Indian pilot was an “act of charity”.The Foreign Office, in an earlier statement on Friday, stated that the Indian network of extra-judicial and extra-territorial killings was now a “global phenomenon” and warned that India’s assassination of the Pakistanis on Pakistani soil was a clear violation of the country’s sovereignty and a breach of the UN Charter.

The statement highlighted a news conference by Foreign Secretary Syrus Sajjad Qazi in January, in which he had said that there was “credible evidence” of links between Indian agents and the assassination of two Pakistani nationals in Sialkot and Rawalakot.“These cases exposed the increasing sophistication and brazenness of Indian-sponsored terrorist acts inside Pakistan, with striking similarities to the pattern observed in other countries, including Canada and the United States,” the FO said.“It is critical to bring to justice the perpetrators, facilitators, financiers and sponsors of these extrajudicial and extraterritorial killings. India must be held accountable internationally for its blatant violation of international law,” the Foreign Office added.