Don’t expect restraint if our nuclear sites are struck, Pakistan’s foreign minister tells India
Khawaja Asif also claimed that India was not responding to Pakistani efforts to improve the ties between the two nations.
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif on Thursday warned India against targeting its nuclear installations, and said that nobody should expect restraint from Islamabad if that happens, the Dawn reported.
Asif’s comments follow Indian Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa’s remark that New Delhi can fight a war on two fronts. Dhanoa was responding to queries about about Pakistan claiming that it was developing short-range nuclear weapons to counter India. Dhanoa had said that India had the capability to “locate, fix and strike across the border” to counter Pakistan’s nuclear weapons.
“If that happens, nobody should expect restraint from us,” Asif said at an event in Washington, the Hindustan Times reported. “That is the most diplomatic language I can use.”
Asif added that India did not respond to Pakistani efforts to improve bilateral ties, PTI reported. “What is going on in Kashmir is the biggest roadblock to normalisation,” Asif said.
Islamabad’s foreign minister is on a three-day trip to the United States in an effort to rebuild the relationship between Islamabad and Washington. Earlier in the day, he had met United States Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and National Security Advisor HR McMaster.
