New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar sent a firm reminder to Pakistan on Monday, asserting India’s readiness to respond decisively to future terrorist provocations, irrespective of the depth of targets within Pakistani territory. His statement comes weeks after intense military confrontations between India and Pakistan concluded with a ceasefire understanding.
Speaking to POLITICO in Brussels during his official visit for high-level trade discussions with the European Union, Jaishankar described Pakistan as a nation “very steeped in its use of terrorism as an instrument of state policy.” Jaishankar’s comments follow a military standoff sparked by Pakistan’s failed drone and missile assaults on India, which were retaliatory actions against India’s Operation Sindoor. India launched this operation to target terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), following the deadly Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, where armed terrorists linked to Pakistan killed 26 individuals.
India’s decisive retaliation
Jaishankar was unequivocal about India’s preparedness for deep cross-border retaliation, saying, “If they are deep in Pakistan, we will go deep into Pakistan.” He further noted the enduring tension resulting from Pakistan’s persistent endorsement of terror activities, stating, “If you call the commitment to terrorism a source of tension, absolutely, it is.”
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Detailing the effectiveness of India’s military action, Jaishankar highlighted that India’s fighter jets and missile strikes had significantly damaged Pakistan’s Air Force, compelling Islamabad to seek an end to hostilities. “As far I’m concerned, how effective the Rafale was or frankly, how effective other systems were — to me the proof of the pudding are the destroyed and disabled airfields on the Pakistani side,” he elaborated.
Pakistan airfields devastated
Jaishankar disclosed that hostilities ceased solely due to the severity of the damage inflicted on key Pakistani air bases on May 10. “On the 10th morning we hit these eight Pakistani, the main eight Pakistani airfields and disabled them,” he clarified, encouraging verification via publicly accessible satellite imagery: “And don’t take my word for it, these are images which are available in Google. You can look at those runways and those hangars which have taken the hit.”
The ceasefire commenced on May 10 following a direct request from Pakistan’s Director-General of Military Operations (DGMO).
