Pakistan Army chief General Raheel Sharif on Thursday accused India of spreading lies and warned that acts of “aggression” against the country would not go “unpunished”, as relations between the nuclear-armed neighbours continues to sour.
“We have recently witnessed an unfortunate display of utter desperation” playing out inside Kashmir and along Line of Control through a litany of falsehoods and distortion of facts by India”, Raheel said while addressing the passing out ceremony of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) cadets in Risalpur, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. “We expect international community to condemn Indian insinuations and fabrications about a nation that has made unparalleled contributions in the global fight against terrorism.”
Raheel’s comments come as Pakistan continues to refute India’s claims of surgical strikes on terrorist launch pads on its soil. The strikes came as direct fallout of a militant attack on an army camp in north Kashmir Uri.
“Any aggression, born out of deliberate intent or even a strategic miscalculation, will not be allowed to go unpunished and will be met with the most befitting response,” Raheel said. “We will be highly relentless in defending our motherland against entire spectrum of threat. I am confident that with the united resolve of our nation and its armed forces, those inimical to regional peace will not be allowed to succeed. Their evil plots and plans will be defeated.”
Raheel claimed that “enemies” of Pakistan’s peace and prosperity have been distressed by the country’s “successes” and that they were now trying to “reverse the gain:’ and “derail” the progress “through direct and indirect strategy”.
Raheel said Pakistan was a “responsible” country that remained committed to following the policy of friendship with all other countries.
“While doing so, the armed forces of Pakistan remain fully prepared to give the most befitting response to any kind of internal and external threat posed to our nation,” he said.
“Their (enemies’) nefarious designs will not be allowed to succeed at any cost. Resolute efforts to consolidate our gains is the only way forward for which we will not leave any stone unturned,” Raheel said. (Agencies)