Islamabad says it believes in coexistence and dialogue; Can the conflict demonstrate the professionalism of the army
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan has categorically rejected and condemned “highly inflammatory, baseless and irresponsible comments” recently made by Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar about Pakistan’s armed forces.
In a press release issued on Sunday, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said Pakistan is a responsible state and all its institutions, including the armed forces, constitute a pillar of national security, dedicated to safeguarding the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country.
The FO spokesperson was responding to Jaishankar who, at a summit in New Delhi on December 6, said that most of India’s problems with Pakistan stemmed from its military establishment, which he said had cultivated and sustained deep-rooted animosity towards India.
“When you look at terrorism, when you look at the training camps, when you look at this sort of policy of almost ideological hostility towards India, where does that come from? It comes from [Pakistan] army,” the Indian minister reportedly declared.
His remarks came months after Pakistan and India engaged in a brief but intense military confrontation, during which the nuclear-armed neighbors exchanged artillery and missile fire and deployed drones and warplanes.
The four-day standoff began after India launched missile strikes inside Pakistan on May 7, in what it claims were retaliation for a militant attack on tourists in the Pahalgam region of held Kashmir on April 22.
On May 10, Pakistan carried out a series of strikes on various military sites in India. New Delhi accepted a ceasefire the same day after the intervention of the United States. During the confrontation, Pakistan shot down seven Indian fighter jets, including Rafales.
The FO spokesperson said the May conflict vividly demonstrated the professionalism of the Pakistani armed forces as well as their determination to defend the Pakistani homeland and people against any Indian aggression in a dignified, effective and responsible manner. No propaganda can deny this truth.
Andrabi said attempts by Indian leaders to defame Pakistani state institutions and its leaders were part of a propaganda campaign intended to divert attention from India’s destabilizing actions in the region and beyond as well as state terrorism in Pakistan.
“Such inflammatory rhetoric only illustrates the extent of India’s disregard for friendship, peace and stability in our region,” the spokesperson added.
He said that instead of making misleading remarks about Pakistan’s armed forces, India should investigate the fascist and revisionist Hindutva ideology that had unleashed a reign of mob justice, lynchings, arbitrary detentions and demolition of properties and places of worship.
“Both the Indian state and rulers have become hostages of this terror in the name of religion. Pakistan believes in coexistence, dialogue and diplomacy. However, it remains united and determined in its intent and capacity to safeguard its interests and sovereignty,” he added.
India and Pakistan have fought three wars since their independence in 1947. They have also engaged in countless border skirmishes and major military clashes, most notably during the 1999 Kargil conflict.
The four-day conflict in May 2025 ended with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire, after Washington said both sides expressed willingness to continue dialogue.
Pakistan said it was ready to discuss all outstanding issues, but India refused negotiations and unilaterally suspended the Indus Waters Treaty, a 1960 water-sharing agreement, brokered by the World Bank, allocating three eastern rivers to India and three western rivers to Pakistan.
