FO terms Indian statement on Pakistan strikes inside Afghanistan as ‘baseless, misleading’

Pakistan's Foreign Office on Wednesday rejected a statement issued by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs on March 17, terming it “baseless, misleading and unjustified”.

According to the spokesperson, the Indian statement pertained to Pakistan’s ongoing operations against terrorist hideouts in Afghanistan. Responding to the remarks, Pakistan said that in the context of Indian sponsorship of anti-Pakistan terrorism from Afghan soil and its historical negative role in the region, the statement reflected “blatant hypocrisy and double standards”.

The spokesperson criticised India’s leadership, stating that the remarks came from a country whose leadership does not accept responsibility for fomenting Islamophobia and violence against its Muslim population for domestic political gains. He added that the same leadership had recently announced open support for an occupying power involved in the killing of thousands of innocent Palestinians.

Calling the Indian position contradictory, the Foreign Office said it was “quite ridiculous” for a country that had undermined the sovereignty and territorial integrity of its neighbouring states in the past to speak about international law and the principles of the United Nations Charter.

The spokesperson said such statements could not divert attention from what he described as India’s actions in occupied Kashmir, where Kashmiris were being suppressed and deprived of their right to self-determination. He added that these actions were in violation of relevant UN resolutions.

Pakistan demanded that India stop supporting terrorist groups operating from Afghan soil, including those listed by the UN Security Council sanctions regime. The statement concluded with a call for India to refrain from what it described as unwarranted criticism of Pakistan’s successful counter-terrorism operations.