Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said on Monday that his previous remarks, suggesting an “imminent Indian military incursion” after last week’s deadly attack on tourists at the cashmere occupied by India, were misinterpreted.
Addressing Reuters earlier in the day at his office in Islamabad, Asif said: “We have strengthened our strengths because it is something that is imminent now. So, in this situation, certain strategic decisions must be made, so these decisions have been made. ”
He explained that with the rhetoric of India, the Pakistani army had informed the government of the possibility of an Indian attack, although it has not developed specific information or evaluations leading to this point of view.
Asif pointed out that Pakistan remained on a high alert, but would consider using its nuclear arsenal if there was a “direct threat to our existence”.
In a separate interview on a private news channel, he said: “We must be mentally prepared, there is a war on the horizon. The possibility is there, a very lively possibility that we can have war the next day or two or three.”
However, questioned later on his remarks in another interview on another news channel, AIF said that his comments had been misinterpreted. “I think it was misinterpreted on another channel. I already told them and I didn’t say anything like it,” he said. “They (the channel) asked me what were the chances of war, so I said that the next two to three days were crucial.”
He explained that his declaration should not be considered as a categorical prediction of war beginning in a few days, but rather a reflection that “the coming days would be crucial”. He added that the channel in question was making the necessary corrections.
While reaffirming that “the danger is imminent”, Asif argued that he had not suggested that the conflict was inevitable. He also noted that other countries in the region are actively working to defuse tensions and avoid any controversial development.
“Pakistan is 100% ready to face a fighting situation if the country’s sovereignty is threatened or that war is imposed on it,” he said. Reiterating its previous point, Asif concluded that although the possibility of a conflict in the coming days existed, efforts were underway to prevent such a result.
