Pakistan must get rid of its ‘terrorist infrastructure’, India PM Modi says
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi says India will not tolerate “nuclear blackmail”.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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NEW DELHI – Pakistan will have to get rid of its “terrorist infrastructure” if it wants to be “saved”, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on May 12, his first comments after a weekend ceasefire following days of military conflict between India and Pakistan.
“I will tell the global community also, if we talk to Pakistan, it will be about terrorism only… It will be about Pakistan-occupied Kashmir,” Mr Modi said, referring to Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
Mr Modi also vowed to respond strongly to any future “terrorist attack”.
“If another terrorist attack against India is carried out, a strong response will be given,” he said, adding New Delhi would not tolerate “nuclear blackmail” in the event of conflict.
The flare-up in violence a terrorist attack
India said the April 22 attack was backed by Pakistan, a charge that Islamabad denied.
Pakistan immediately responded to the strikes with heavy artillery fire. It claimed to have downed five Indian fighter jets, something New Delhi has not commented on.
The clashes ended on May 10, with US President Donald Trump announcing that India and Pakistan had agreed to a truce
Peace holds
On May 12, hours before Mr Modi’s public address, the military operations chiefs of India and Pakistan spoke by phone.
The discussion between the chiefs focused on the ceasefire, Indian broadcaster CNN-News18 reported, citing top government sources.
It said curbs imposed by the countries on each other remained in place, including the suspension of trade and closure of their borders.
The latest conflict was the worst since India and Pakistan clashed in 1999 and sparked global shudders that it could spiral into full-blown war.
There were initial doubts on the truce as the nuclear-armed rivals accused each other of breaching the May 10 ceasefire just hours after it was unexpectedly announced by Mr Trump on social media.
But the Indian army said: “The night remained largely peaceful across… Kashmir and other areas along the international border.”
“No incidents have been reported, marking the first calm night in recent days,” the statement added.
On May 12, India reopened 32 airports it shut during the clashes, with the Airports Authority of India saying in a statement they were available for civil operations. Some schools remained closed.
Pakistan reopened its airspace on May 10.
Visitors were kept out of an airport in the border city of Amritsar shortly after the announcement, a Reuters witness said.
Mr Dharmendra Singh, 34, a driver in the city sacred to Sikhs, said there was no fear among residents, though the situation was not as serious as in the northern city of Jammu.
“It’s over now… It’s good to see the city coming back to its glory,” he said.
It was the second straight night without gunfire or shelling at Poonch, a frontier town in the part of divided Kashmir administered by India.
Poonch was one of the worst-hit places in India, with at least 12 residents killed and most of the estimated 60,000 residents fleeing their homes.
On May 11, people started trickling back, although many were still jittery about the ceasefire.
Thousands of schools remained closed across Pakistan-administered Kashmir as areas were cleared of debris from strikes and firing, said local official Naveed-Ul-Hassan Bukhari.
Both sides claim a win
Top India and Pakistan military officials held briefings late on May 11, with each claiming the upper hand and warning they were ready to respond if there were fresh attacks.
“We have delivered the promise we made to our people,” Pakistan’s military spokesman Lieutenant-General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said, calling it a “success on the battleground”.
“We re-established deterrence and neutralised key threats,” Pakistani Air Vice-Marshal Ahmed Aurangzeb told reporters.
Indian Lieutenant-General Rajiv Ghai said: “We have thus far exercised immense restraint and our actions have been focused, measured and non-escalatory.”
But he added: “Any threat to the sovereignty, territorial integrity and safety of our citizens will be met with decisive force.”
While Islamabad thanked Washington for facilitating the ceasefire and welcomed Mr Trump’s offer to mediate on the Kashmir dispute with India, New Delhi has not commented on US involvement in the truce or talks at a neutral site.
India’s main opposition Congress party, which backed Mr Modi after the April 22 attack, called for a special Parliament session on the latest developments with Pakistan.
“The government should also give its stand on the statements made by America on the Kashmir issue, as this is a bilateral issue,” Congress party member Sachin Pilot said on May 11.
India, which says disputes with Pakistan have to be resolved directly by the neighbours, has rejected the involvement of any third party. AFP, REUTERS
