No first strike but will respond forcefully if India attacks: Dar

ISLAMABAD/ LAHORE: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar on Tuesday said that Pakistan would not make first strike but it would respond forcefully to any aggression by India.

He asserted India had failed miserably to create a narrative.

Winding up the discussion on the Pahalgam incident and the events unfolding afterwards, he said, “We have reports that indicate that they are considering increasing the tension. We will not take the initiative, but if India commits aggression, then a brick will be answered with stone”.

Referring to India’s actions, he said that a lie had no feet to stand on, adding that New Delhi’s narrative had completely failed, and it could not to come up with any proof of Pakistan’s involvement in the incident, adding that the majority of key nations had called on both countries to desist from escalatory moves.

Referring to the tweets he had himself seen, the foreign minister said that Indian politicians are now demanding Modi’s resignation. “I am saying with confidence and satisfaction that Pakistan has nothing to do with the incident and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had already on Sunday called for an independent and transparent inquiry and share evidence,” he noted. Dar, who is also the Leader of the House, said that the Indian demarche does not mention the Indus Waters Treaty, but a letter has been received from India and it is written in it that the situation has changed and that they are suspending the treaty. The foreign minister said that he had held an inter-ministerial meeting on Monday for consultations and he had directed for preparing a dossier on the Indus Waters Treaty within 48 hours, which will be shared with various countries and institutions.

Dar said that so far, he had briefed foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (deputy PM), China, Britain, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kuwait, Bahrain and Hungary and the prime minister of Qatar, about the situation and Pakistan’s concerns.

He said that China and Turkiye had taken a very clear stance, and he had talked in detail to the foreign ministers of the two countries.

He made it clear that the response in case of an attack by India will be much stronger than theirs.

Meanwhile, federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi held separate meetings with Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Jamaat-e-Islami Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman.