'Nurtured Terrorism On Industrial Scale': India On Islamabad's Statement On PM Modi's Address

The Ministry of External Affairs on Tuesday reacted to Pakistan's response to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's May 12 address, saying that Islamabad, which has nurtured terrorism on an industrial scale, is fooling itself by thinking that it can escape the consequences of terrorism.

"We have seen the statement made by the Pakistani side. That a nation which has nurtured terrorism on an industrial scale should think that it can escape the consequences is fooling itself," MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.

"The terrorist infrastructure sites that India destroyed were responsible not only for the deaths of Indians but of many other innocents around the world. There is now a new normal. The sooner Pakistan gets it, the better it is," he added.

Jaiswal said India has a firm stance that it will not give in to nuclear blackmail or allow cross-border terrorism to be conducted invoking it. He also said that India's long-standing position on Kashmir has been that it is a bilateral issue between New Delhi and Islamabad and there is no change of this stand.

What Pakistan Claimed?

Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday issued a statement condemning the remarks made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, where he said that Operation Sindoor is India's policy against terrorism and that the talks with Pakistan will only be conducted on terrorism and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

Islamabad said that it is committed to the ceasefire understanding and taking necessary steps towards de-escalation and regional stability. The Pakistani government said that the "portrayal of Pakistan as seeking a ceasefire in “despair and frustration” is yet another blatant lie."

It also claimed that the Pahalgam attack was being exploited "without credible evidence to malign Pakistan" and alleged that it allegedly served domestic political objectives in India and to deflect attention from rising communal tensions. 

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