On tensions with India, Pakistan says will not be first to escalate but will strongly react

KARACHI, Pakistan

Pakistan on Wednesday stressed it will not be the first to resort to any escalation, but warned it will respond "very strongly," to any such move by India.

Addressing a news conference in Islamabad, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said Pakistani armed forces are "on alert" and "vigilant" about the ongoing developments following the April 22 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, in which 26 people were killed.

“The world leaders ... have been requesting the exercise of restraint in recent days. I have made it very clear, on behalf of the government and the nation, that Pakistan will not be the first one to resort to any escalatory move. However, in case of any escalatory move by the Indian side, we will respond very strongly,” Dar said.

Pakistan, he added, has "nothing to do" with Pahalgam attack. "Period."

"Pakistan has neither any connection … nor is the potential beneficiary," he added.

Condemning the unilateral suspension of a World Bank-sponsored water sharing agreement, the Indus Waters Treaty by New Delhi, Dar reiterated Islamabad's warning that any act to stop or divert Pakistan's water share will be treated as an "act of war."

He accused New Delhi of using the latest attack as an excuse to "suppress the legitimate freedom struggle" in Jammu and Kashmir, and to launch "blatant Islamophobic sentiments" against Kashmiris.

The Pahalgam attack has further strained the already tense relations between Pakistan and India over the disputed Himalayan region.

*Saadet Gokce contributed from Istanbul