No room for war between N-rivals: Asif

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Thursday cautioned Indian counterpart Rajnath Singh against escalating tensions ahead of the anniversary of the deadly Pahalgam attack, dismissing the latter's recent threatening remarks as provocative and politically motivated.

In a pointed message on X, Asif criticised Singh's remarks as "repeated rhetoric" that exposed India's strategic anxiety ahead of the anniversary of what he described as a "staged false flag operation". Asif accused New Delhi of relying on "manufactured crises" that failed to withstand international scrutiny.

"Such threat-mongering is not new," he said, adding that it followed a predictable pattern of externalising India's internal vulnerabilities and provoking escalation under the guise of unsubstantiated allegations for vested political interests.

Recalling Pakistan's armed forces' response in May last year during the Marka-e-Haq operation, Asif warned that history served as a stark reminder of the consequences of miscalculation. "Marka-e-Haq remains fresh in our minds. The next time, our response will be even more forceful and decisive. Let there be no ambiguity," he asserted.