Islamabad (TDI): Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar has said that Pakistan never considered using nuclear weapons while recently defending aggression by neighboring India, calling Islamabad’s military strikes as measured and strictly in self-defense.
In his interview with CNN, he said that the situation had grown dangerously volatile after India launched attacks on Pakistan on May 7, but added Pakistan never considered a nuclear response.
We were very confident about our conventional capacity and capabilities that we will beat the enemy both on ground or in air, Dar said.
The recent stand-off marked the worst military confrontation between the two nations since the 1971 war. Dozens of people lost their lives on both sides, while infrastructure was heavily damaged in contested border regions.
FM Dar termed New Delhi’s actions as a “wishful attempt to establish its hegemony” in Kashmir. He stated Islamabad had “no choice” but to respond to an unprovoked act of aggression.
After several days of intense fighting, both countries agreed to a ceasefire on Saturday following the diplomatic efforts of the United States and other powers.
Dar also said that Pakistan and India did not directly contact each other during the talks. Instead, the US facilitated the communication.
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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said earlier on Monday that India had only “paused” its attacks and said “they will further retaliate if provoked.”
FM Dar, however, rejected the suggestion that Islamabad had sought to de-escalate. “India had seen what happened in the sky. They could see how serious the damage was,” he said.
Read More: India, Pakistan Agree to Immediate Ceasefire, President Trump
He also reiterated Islamabad’s stancr that the conflict’s root cause lies in Kashmir.
“Kashmir is the root cause of this instability in the region,” Dar said. “Its future must be decided through the right to self-determination of Kashmiris.”
Farkhund Yousafzai is an Associate Editor at The Diplomatic Insight.
