Pakistan's Defense Minister warned of escalating tensions with India and the possibility of a full-scale nuclear war, and spoke of Islamabad's readiness for any eventuality.
According to Ashura News, quoted by Iram News, Pakistan's Defense Minister Khawaja Asif warned today (Friday) that the escalation of tensions with India could turn into a nuclear confrontation if the current crisis is not contained.
Stressing Islamabad's full readiness for any eventuality, he said: "Our response depends on India's action. Our response will be calculated. If a full-scale attack or something similar is carried out, it is obvious that a large-scale war will break out. If the situation goes badly, the outcome of this conflict will be tragic."
Expressing hope for a negotiated settlement of the situation, the Pakistani Defense Minister added: "Yes, the world should be worried. A conflict between two nuclear powers is always worrying."
Khawaja Asif told Sky News in response to a question about whether Pakistan has a long history of supporting, training and financing terrorist groups: "We have been doing these dirty jobs for the United States and the West, including Britain, for three decades." That was the mistake we made, and that is why we are now being blamed for these things.
He stressed that if Pakistan had not participated in the war against the Soviet Union in the 1980s and then in the so-called war on terror after the 9/11 attacks, its “record would have been spotless.”
The deadly attack on tourists in Indian-controlled Kashmir has once again raised tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad.
India, blaming Pakistan for the attack, has taken a series of unprecedented measures, including suspending the Indus Water Treaty, banning Pakistani citizens from entering, cancelling visas, expelling military advisers, closing the Attari-Waghe border crossing and reducing the staff of the Indian embassy in Islamabad. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has vowed to hunt down the perpetrators of the attack anywhere in the world.
In response, Pakistan’s National Security Council approved a series of retaliatory measures, including suspending trade relations with India, closing its airspace to Indian flights, expelling Indian citizens from Pakistan and closing the traditional Wagah border crossing.
Pakistan’s Senate on Friday unanimously rejected Delhi’s claim that Pakistan was involved in the blast in Indian-controlled Kashmir, saying India’s accusations against Islamabad were baseless and politically motivated. The resolution strongly condemned all forms of terrorism and stressed that targeting innocent civilians was against Pakistan’s core values.
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