Pakistan on Monday criticised India’s Ministry of External Affairs, accusing it of “twisting” the remarks made by Army Chief Asim Munir during his visit to the US. In an address to the Pakistani diaspora in Tampa, Florida, Munir reportedly made a nuclear threat in case his country faced an existential threat in a future war with India. However, later, it made a dramatic shift in urging India for talks on Indus Water Treaty
India’s strong message to Pakistan
In a strong response to Munir’s nuclear threat from US soil, the MEA said India has already made it clear that it will not give in to nuclear blackmail and that it will continue to take all steps necessary to safeguard national security.
The MEA said Munir’s remarks reinforced the well-held doubts about the integrity of nuclear command and control in Pakistan, where the military is “hand-in-glove” with terrorist groups.
“Pakistan strongly rejects the immature remarks made by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs earlier today…,” the Foreign Office said while responding to media queries regarding the MEA statement.
The army chief on Sunday completed his second high-profile trip to the US in less than two months, during which he met senior US military and civilian leaders and also interacted with the Pakistani diaspora.
Pakistan urges India to resume normal functioning of Indus Waters Treaty
Meanwhile, Pakistan on Monday said it is committed to the full implementation of the Indus Water Treaty and urged India to immediately resume the normal functioning of the agreement, which New Delhi has held in abeyance since May. A day after the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, India took a series of punitive measures against Pakistan that included putting the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 in “abeyance”.