Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accused Pakistan of “failing to learn from history” by backing terrorism. Modi was speaking at an event on Friday marking the 25th anniversary of India’s military clash with Pakistan in the Himalayan region of Kargil. It was the last major fighting between the two nuclear-armed neighbors, which have fought several wars since independence from Britain in 1947.
Modi claimed that Islamabad was responsible for the conflict in Kargil, saying that while “India was trying for peace, Pakistan had once again showed its untrustable face.” He also alleged the country is using terrorism and proxy wars to maintain its relevance.
“I want to tell these patrons of terrorism that their sinister plans will never succeed,” Modi stated.
“Whatever evil attempts Pakistan has made in the past, it has had to face failure. But Pakistan has not learnt anything from its history. It is trying to keep relevant with the help of terrorism and proxy war,” he alleged, pledging that India’s “brave [forces] will squash terrorism, the enemy will be given a befitting reply.”
New Delhi has repeatedly claimed that Islamabad backs Islamist militants involved in “cross-border terrorism” in Jammu and Kashmir, the Himalayan region at the center of a territorial dispute between the neighboring countries. Despite a ceasefire in February 2021, sporadic clashes in the area continue.
Last week, four Indian soldiers, including an officer, were killed in an encounter with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda district. The day before, NDTV reported that over the past 32 months, a total of 48 Indian soldiers had been killed in clashes with terrorists in the region.
Pakistan denounced Modi’s remarks on Friday as “bravado and jingoism,” with its Foreign Office spokesman saying that such statements damage regional peace and are counter-productive. He also suggested that India take a look at what he called its own campaign of “orchestrating targeted assassinations, subversion and terrorism in foreign territories.” Islamabad alleges that “Indian agents” killed two Pakistani citizens linked to terrorist groups on its soil earlier this year, which New Delhi has dismissed as “false and malicious” propaganda.
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