‘Op Sindoor halted after DGMO talks at Pak’s request’
NEW DELHI, May 26:
Terrorism is an “open business” in Pakistan that is financed, organised and used by the state and its military, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said.
The External Affairs Minister also said that India and Pakistan were “very, very far away” from a nuclear conflict during their recent clashes.
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In an interview to German newspaper FAZ, Jaishankar, in an apparent criticism of the West, said there has been a tendency to link everything in “our part of the world” to a “nuclear problem”.
“Very, very far away. I’m frankly astonished by your question,” he said when asked how far away was the world from a nuclear conflict between India and Pakistan.
“At no point was a nuclear level reached. There is a narrative as if everything that happens in our part of the world leads directly to a nuclear problem. That disturbs me a lot because it encourages terrible activities like terrorism,” he said.
Jaishankar said terrorist organisations are “openly” operating from the cities and towns of Pakistan.
His remarks came when asked if India was able to convince its partners about the link between Pakistan and the terrorists involved in the Pahalgam attack.
“Anyone who is not blind can see that the terrorist organisations are openly operating from the cities and towns of Pakistan. That is no secret,” the External Affairs Minister said.
“The UN Security Council terror list is full of Pakistani names and places, and these are the very places we have targeted. So please don’t think that something is only going on behind the scenes,” he said.
“In Pakistan, terrorism is a very open business. A business that is supported, financed, organized and used by the state. And by their military,” Jaishankar added.
The External Affairs Minister was in Berlin on the third and final leg of his three-nation tour of the Netherlands, Denmark and Germany.
On India’s response following the Pahalgam terror attack, Jaishankar said New Delhi sent a clear signal to the terrorists that there is a price to be paid for carrying out such attacks.
“The firing was then started by the Pakistani military. We fired back in self-defense and once the Pakistanis understood that they were taking a harmful course, we were able to stop firing,” he said.
“This situation has not changed for two weeks, that is the status,” he said on the May 10 understanding reached between Indian and Pakistani militaries on stopping military actions.
To a question on whether the US should be thanked for helping firm up the understanding, Jaishankar said it was agreed between the military commanders of India and Pakistan through “direct contact”.
He said India effectively hit and incapacitated Pakistan’s main airbases and air defence systems that forced the neighbouring country to seek ending of the hostilities.
“So who should I thank for the cessation of hostilities? I thank the Indian military because it was the Indian military action that made Pakistan say: We are ready to stop,” he said.
On whether China played a role in India’s conflict with Pakistan, Jaishankar only referred to Chinese-origin weapons in Pakistani military’s armoury.
“Many of the weapons systems that Pakistan has are of Chinese origin and the two countries are very close. You can draw your own conclusions from that,” he said.
Meanwhile, Jaishankar on Monday told a Parliamentary Panel that Pakistan was informed by the DGMO about Indian strikes on terror camps in their territory only after they were executed, sources said.
He also said he never spoke to Pakistan and cleared the air about alleged US “interference”, saying the decision to halt the military operation was taken bilaterally after a request from the Pakistan side.
Addressing members of the Consultative Committee on External Affairs here, the Minister said the cessation of Operation Sindoor was done only after Pakistan DGMO asked for the halting of hostilities and there was no question of US mediation between the two, the sources said.
The Congress and Rahul Gandhi have been targeting Jaishankar, alleging that he had informed Pakistan beforehand about the Indian strikes at terror camps.
The sources said the minister told the MPs at the meeting that only the DGMOs of the countries spoke to each other and no other Indian official spoke with the Pakistani side.
He said the US was urging India to speak with Pakistan and it was told that terror and talks would not go together, he said.
Responding to several queries posed by MPs during the meeting about the halting of Operation Sindoor and the US “interference”, the External Affairs Minister told MPs at the meeting that the DGMO had informed his Pakistani counterpart that if they would fire, India would fire back.
He said the targeted strikes at terror camps in Pakistan also hit the morale of Pakistani forces.
The sources said the minister sought the cooperation of all MPs in “exposing” Pakistan across the world. He said that is why the Government has sent multi-party delegations of MPs to various countries to put across India’s united message against terrorism to the world.
Jaishankar shared pictures of chairing the Consultative Committee Meeting of MEA on X.
“Discussed Operation Sindoor and India’s zero-tolerance policy against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. Underlined the importance of sending a strong and united message in that regard,” the Minister also said.
While Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri gave a presentation on Operation Sindoor to the MPs at the meeting, Jaishankar responded to queries later.
The sources said the Congress members asked the Government why India was “hyphenated” with Pakistan by the US and also raised the issue of IMF aid to Pakistan and India’s abstention at the meet.
They said the Congress also raised concerns over Pakistan’s growing relationship with China. (PTI)
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