By Asif Shahzad, Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam and Shivam Patel
ISLAMABAD/NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Pakistan said on Tuesday that it remains committed to the truce with India, agreed after four days of intense fighting last week, but vowed to respond to any future aggression by New Delhi with full resolve.
The comments from Islamabad came in response to an address to the nation by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, in which he warned Pakistan that New Delhi would target “terrorist hideouts” across the border again if there were new attacks on India, without being deterred by “nuclear blackmail”.
The nuclear-armed South Asian neighbours fired missiles and drones targeting each other’s military installations after India said it struck “terrorist infrastructure” sites in Pakistan and Pakistani Kashmir on Wednesday in retaliation for an attack on Hindu tourists in Indian Kashmir that killed 26 men.
Pakistan said the targets were all civilian and denies Indian accusations that it was behind the Kashmir attack.
Pakistan’s military said on Tuesday the dead in the attacks comprised 40 civilians and 11 of its armed forces. India has said at least five military personnel and 16 civilians died.
It was the worst fighting between the two nations in nearly three decades and they agreed to a ceasefire on Saturday, following diplomacy and pressure from the United States.
The Pakistani foreign ministry said Islamabad categorically rejects the “provocative and inflammatory assertions” made by Modi on Monday.
“At a time when international efforts are being made for regional peace and stability, this statement represents a dangerous escalation,” it said in a statement.
“Pakistan remains committed to the recent ceasefire understanding and taking necessary steps towards de-escalation and regional stability,” it said, adding that any future aggression will also be met with full resolve.
India said late on Tuesday it had declared an official working at the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi persona non grata “for indulging in activities not in keeping with his official status in India”.
Both countries have already reduced the strength of their embassies after relations nosedived following the April 22 Kashmir attack.
“The official has been asked to leave India within 24 hours,” India’s foreign ministry said in a statement, without elaborating.
MODI REPEATS WARNING
Hindu-majority India and Muslim Pakistan each rule part of the Himalayan region of Kashmir, but both claim it in full.
The neighbours have fought two of their three wars since independence in 1947 over the region and there have been several other limited flare-ups, including in 1999 and 2019.
Earlier on Tuesday, Modi visited the Adampur air base near the border and repeated his warning to Pakistan as he addressed Indian Air Force personnel, posing with them for photographs.
“We will not differentiate between the government sponsoring terrorism and the masterminds of terrorism,” Modi said, referring to India’s response in the event of another attack.
“We will enter their dens and hit them without giving them an opportunity to survive,” he said.
Separately, the Indian foreign ministry said the issue of trade did not come up in discussions with Washington during their conversations on the tensions with Pakistan.
On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump said the leaders of India and Pakistan were “unwavering”, and the U.S. “helped a lot” to secure the ceasefire, adding that trade was a “big reason” why the countries stopped fighting.
India has said the military operations chiefs of both nations spoke by telephone on Monday, reiterating their commitment to halt firing and consider steps to reduce troops on the border.
Pakistan has not provided details of the call.
(Reporting by Asif Shahzad and Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam in Islamabad, Shivam Patel and Sakshi Dayal in New Delhi; Writing by Tanvi Mehta, Abinaya Vijayaraghavan and YP Rajesh; Editing by Clarence Fernandez, Sharon Singleton and Gareth Jones)
