3 days ago
Asim Munir turns a blind eye to terrorism, calls Pakistan ‘regional stabiliser'
Turning a blind eye to state-sponsored terrorism, Pakistan's Army Chief, General Asim Munir, on Saturday accused India of launching two unprovoked attacks on Pakistan, describing the incidents as a 'troubling absence of strategic foresight.'
In recent years, Pakistan has grappled with a range of overlapping crises, including a resurgence of 'state-sponsored terrorism' and escalating border tensions with both Afghanistan and Iran. These challenges have been compounded by a deeply polarised and unstable political landscape that has long characterised the country's governance.
Speaking at the Pakistan Naval Academy in Karachi, Munir blamed New Delhi for escalating regional tensions and warned that any future aggression would be met with a 'decisive response.'
Calling Pakistan a 'net regional stabiliser,' Munir said that the country had responded 'resolutely' to previous Indian actions, positioning Islamabad as a defender of peace against what he characterised as India's destabilising moves.
Munir once again raised the Kashmir issue, referring to the region as under 'India's illegal occupation.' He stated, 'At such a time, we must remember the sacrifices of our Kashmiri brothers who are struggling against India's illegal occupation.'
Since 2018, Pakistan has been designated a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) under the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998. It was redesignated a CPC in 2022.
According to the CIA World Factbook, Pakistan is one of the world's top transit corridors for opiates and cannabis products trafficked with Afghanistan and Iran.
As many as 26 people were killed and several others injured in the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam on 22 April. Indian Armed Forces launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
Under Operation Sindoor, India had conducted airstrikes on nine terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) on May 7, in response to the Pahalgam terror attack.
A day after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, India took a series of punitive measures against Pakistan that included putting the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 in "abeyance". 'Following the Pahalgam terrorist attack, India has in exercise of its rights as a sovereign nation under international law, placed the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance, until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for cross-border terrorism,' the MEA said.
(With inputs from agencies)
