ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar said on Tuesday Islamabad would not be the first to strike India despite heightened tensions following a deadly attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, though it would respond forcefully to any escalatory move by its eastern neighbor.
India has blamed Pakistan for the April 22 assault in the Pahalgam area of the disputed Himalayan region that left 26 tourists dead, an allegation Islamabad has categorically rejected.
In the aftermath, New Delhi suspended the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) and expelled Pakistani diplomats. The latter move was reciprocated by the administration in Islamabad, though it also called for a “neutral” international investigation into the Pahalgam incident.
Dar, who also serves as his country’s foreign minister, shared the details of Pakistan’s diplomatic outreach while addressing the Senate earlier today.
“As of now, we’ve spoken to the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, China, the United Kingdom, Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Hungary — except in the case of Qatar, where I spoke directly to the prime minister,” Dar told lawmakers.
“I walked them through what happened — India’s psyche, its history and our concerns about what intentions it may have in light of that history,” he continued.
Dar said Pakistan’s intelligence indicated that India was contemplating some form of escalation.
“We will not be the first one [to strike],” he said. “But if India does it, then this time there will be no tit-for-tat. Our response will be stronger than the Indian action.”
Referring to the 2019 Pulwama attack that killed 40 Indian paramilitary personnel and was blamed on a Pakistan-based militant group, the Pakistani deputy prime minister noted that New Delhi had used the incident as a pretext to revoke Article 370 of its constitution, which granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir.
The region was subsequently absorbed into India’s union territory framework, a move Pakistan has repeatedly condemned.
Dar also claimed that India had been attempting to alter the 1960 Indus Water Treaty, which determines the river water sharing mechanism between both countries, for the past two years, citing changing circumstances.
“I have my doubt, much like other people, that this drama was staged to suspend this treaty,” he said while referring to the Pahalgam attack.
“We obviously don’t have evidence that they have staged this drama,” he continued. “What we do say with full confidence is that Pakistan has nothing to do with this [attack].”
Dar also applauded China and Türkiye for expressing clear support for Pakistan since the crisis began.
Pakistan won’t strike first but will respond forcefully to Indian escalation — deputy PM
https://arab.news/5hpu6
Pakistan won’t strike first but will respond forcefully to Indian escalation — deputy PM
- Ishaq Dar says Pakistan shared its concerns with countries like Saudi Arabia following tensions with India
- The deputy PM says he suspects India may have staged tourist shootings to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty
Pakistan has ruled out military operation in northwestern Tirah Valley
- Residents in northwestern Tirah Valley fled their homes this month fearing a military operation against militants
- Defense minister says army conducting intelligence-based operations in area, residents’ migration “routine” practice
Islamabad: Defense Minister Khawaja Asif on Tuesday clarified that the military was not conducting a military operation in the northwestern Tirah Valley, saying that the ongoing residents’ migration from the area was a routine practice that has been going on for several years.
The defense minister’s clarification came as residents of Tirah Valley in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province bordering Afghanistan fled their homes this month, fearing a planned military operation by the army against militants, particularly the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) group.
Pakistan’s information ministry on Sunday issued a clarification that the armed forces were not involved in the “depopulation” of the valley. It pointed to a notification from the provincial Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Relief, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Department in December which demanded the release of funds, reportedly Rs4 billion [$14.24 million], for the voluntary movement of people from Tirah Valley.
Speaking to reporters at a news conference alongside Information Minister Attaullah Tarar and Special Assistant to the PM for Information and KP Affairs Ikhtiar Wali Khan, Asif said the last military operation in the area was conducted several years ago. He said the military had decided that intelligence-based operations (IBOs) were more effective than military operations as they resulted in lower civilian casualties.
“So over a long period of time, the army gave up [military] operation in favor of IBOs,” Asif said. “For many years this practice has been continuing. Hence, there is no question of an operation there.”
The defense minister described the migration of residents from Tirah Valley as a “routine” practice due to the harsh cold.
He criticized the provincial government, led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party for not serving the people of the area, accusing it of not building any schools, hospitals, or police stations in Tirah Valley.
Asif said around 400-500 TTP members lived in the valley with their families, alleging that hemp was being harvested there on over 12,000 acres of land. He said that while hemp is also used for medicinal and construction purposes, its dividends were going to militants and politicians.
“All of this hemp is harvested there and the dividends from it either go to the people associated with politics or the TTP,” the minister said.
“We have initiated the process to stop this so that the people benefit from this harvest and so that schools and hospitals are constructed there.”
The minister said that a district-level jirga or tribal council met representatives of the KP government on Dec. 11, 24 and 31 to decide matters related to the residents’ migration in the area.
Holding up the KP Relief, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Department notification, Asif said:
“In the presence of this notification, in the presence of this tribal council and in the presence of all of these things, where do you see the army?“
The minister accused the provincial government of deflecting its “failures” in the province to the armed forces or to a military operation that did not exist.
The migration has exposed tensions between the provincial government and the military establishment over the use of force in the region.
KP Law Minister Aftab Alam Afridi said earlier this month that the provincial government will not allow a military operation to take place in the area, arguing that past military campaigns had failed to deliver lasting stability.
