Islamabad: Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Saturday said that Islamabad will consider de-escalation only if India stops its ongoing military strikes. However, he asserted that Pakistan’s armed forces remain on the defensive and are currently taking only minimal retaliatory action.
Dar's remarks, echoed by another senior federal minister, come amid heightened hostilities between the two nuclear-armed neighbours, who have exchanged missile strikes on each other's installations over the past 12 hours, further intensifying the conflict.
"Pakistan will consider de-escalation if India stops further attacks. However, if India launches any more strikes, our response will follow," Dar warned.
He emphasised that Pakistan's civil-military leadership has adopted a defensive posture. "The action that the Pakistan civil-military leadership has taken is proportionate. Many more actions can be taken, and we are ready for that, but this is the minimum action being taken just now, which will be continued for a while," he said.
Dar further criticised India’s recent operations, describing them as theatrical. "The tamasha (circus) that India has staged over the last three days... we have no choice but to retaliate to India’s military actions," he told Geo News. He added that Pakistan will "not let India claim hegemony."
"This operation that we started today will all end in some way. It all depends on what India wants," he reiterated.
Information Minister Atta Tarar also echoed Dar's stance, stating that the responsibility to de-escalate lies with New Delhi. "It is in the hands of India... If India de-escalates (we will follow)," Tarar told BBC. He added that Pakistani troops have been deployed along the border in direct response to Indian strikes.
Dar, who also serves as Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister, said that Islamabad had no choice but to respond militarily after India allegedly targeted the Nur Khan Air Base. "Pakistan had no choice, so our civil-military leadership made the decision following the attack on Nur Khan Air Base. No more patience. We are just giving them a response," he said.
Tensions between the two countries have significantly escalated after Indian armed forces launched precision strikes on Wednesday, targeting terror launchpads in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). These strikes were in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam massacre, which Indian officials claim had cross-border terror linkages.
In response, Pakistan launched a wave of drone attacks for the second consecutive night on Friday, targeting 26 locations across India, from Jammu and Kashmir to Gujarat. The Indian Ministry of Defence stated that Pakistan's attempts to hit critical infrastructure, including airports and airbases, were effectively thwarted.
On Saturday morning, Pakistan claimed that three of its air bases were struck by Indian missiles and drones.
India, meanwhile, responded to Pakistan’s actions with what it termed a "measured" counterstrike. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri stated in New Delhi that Pakistan's military was carrying out "provocative" and "escalatory" actions while simultaneously launching a "wanton campaign" targeting innocent civilians and infrastructure in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab.
With PTI inputs