Indian Minister’s statement threat to regional peace: FO

Islamabad: Pakistan has once again stated that provocative statement by the Indian Defence Minister has raised alarms in all thinking and conscious organizations; vested in peace, security and stability and upholding of international law.

This was stated by the Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Tahir Andrabi at his weekly media briefing in Islamabad today.

The Spokesperson said the statement of the Indian Defence Minister was deeply troubling. He said Pakistan welcomes all the statements made in opposition to the statement.

He also urged India to refrain from issuing such provocative statements for a very grave consequence on the  wider peace and  security of the region and beyond.

Replying to a question about not sharing of the data in connection with Indus Water Treaty by the New Delhi government, Tahir Andrabi said this Indian action to not follow the prescribed the procedures of data sharing in follow up of the Indus Water Treaty is matter of grave concern and violation of the Treaty.

He added that the rhetoric emerging out from New Delhi, accompanying this violation of Indus Water Treaty, very significantly points towards weaponization of water, which is a breach of international law, particularly the international humanitarian law.   

Answering yet another question the Foreign Office  Spokesperson clarified the ceasefire between Pakistan and Afghanistan does not imply a traditional ceasefire, implemented after two belligerent states in a war or a conflict situation.

He said Pakistan-Afghanistan ceasefire implied that there would be no terrorist attack by Afghan sponsored terrorist proxies into Pakistan.

Ambassador Tahir Andrabi said there have been major terrorist attacks after this ceasefire. He said interpreting in that sense, the ceasefire is not holding because the ceasefire was about ceasing terrorist attacks inside Pakistan by TTP, Fitna- al-Khawarij, and Afghan nationals using Afghan soil.

The Foreign Office Spokesperson explained that if Afghan nationals are attacking, as they did so in Islamabad and elsewhere, Pakistan cannot be very optimistic about ceasefire, which in any case is not the traditional ceasefire between the two states, but to be understood in the context of terrorist attacks from Afghanistan.

Ambassador Tahir Andrabi made it clear that our security forces remain fully alert in wake of any threat from Afghanistan. Our military preparedness is robust. The security challenges Pakistan faces would be addressed with the seriousness that they merit.