Pakistan denounces “provocative” remarks by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh

Pakistan denounces India's threats, asserts sovereignty, and calls for international accountability in response to recent provocative remarks.

A day after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s comments that “if terrorists run away to Pakistan, we will enter Pakistan to kill them”, Spokesperson of Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Saturday “denounced the provocative remarks” while asserting that it stands resolute in its “intent and ability” to safeguard its sovereignty against any “act of aggression”.

The office of the Spokesperson said in a statement that on January 25, Pakistan provided “irrefutable” evidence, “elucidating India’s campaign of extrajudicial and transnational assassinations” on Pakistani soil. “India’s assertion of its preparedness to extra-judicially execute more civilians, arbitrarily pronounced as ‘terrorists’, inside Pakistan constitutes a clear admission of culpability. It is imperative for the international community to hold India accountable for its heinous and illegal actions,” the statement said.

Pakistan stands resolute in its intent and ability to safeguard its sovereignty against any act of aggression, as demonstrated by its robust response to India’s “reckless incursion” in February 2019 which laid bare India’s “hollow claims of military superiority”, the statement said referring to the Balakot air strike by the Indian Air Force on February 26, 2019 and the follow on developments the next day.

“India’s ruling dispensation habitually resorts to hateful rhetoric to fuel hyper-nationalistic sentiments, unapologetically exploiting such discourse for electoral gains,” the Spokesperson said and such “myopic and irresponsible behaviour” not only undermines regional peace but also impedes the prospects of constructive engagement in the long term.

The statement further said that Pakistan has “always demonstrated its commitment” to peace in the region, however, their desire for peace should “not be misconstrued.”

“History attests to Pakistan’s firm resolve and ability to protect and defend itself,” it added.

Mr. Singh made the comments during an interview to a TV channel in response to a question on an article in The Guardian which claimed that India carried out execution of almost 20 terrorists since 2020 inside Pakistan. “If any terrorist tries to disturb the peace in Bharat, or tries to carry out terror activities in Bharat, we will give them befitting reply [muh tod jawab],” the Defence Minister said.