Gen Asim Munir Emphasised Pak’s Resolve To Defend Sovereignty At All costs, Remarks Come Amid Tensions With India

New Delhi: Pakistan Army chief General Asim Munir has warned that any “military misadventure” by India would be met with a “swift and notched-up response” amid rising tensions with India over last month’s terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam. Addressing troops from atop a tank during a military exercise on May 1, Munir was quoted by The Dawn as saying, “Let there be no ambiguity.

The Pakistan Army chief said the military had an “unyielding resolve” to defend the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity “at all costs”. “While Pakistan remains committed to regional peace, our preparedness and resolve to safeguard national interests is absolute,” he said. Interestingly, just days before the Pahalgam attack, Munir had asked Pakistanis to tell their children of the “stark differences between Hindus and Muslims” as the basis for the Islamic Republic’s creation. He invoked the two-nation theory that resulted in the creation of Pakistan in 1947.

This was perceived as a signal to the Pakistani terror assets, according to reports, and the Pahalgam attack came nearly a week after that speech. Munir’s remarks triggered an angry response from India and called Pakistan the epicentre of global terrorism and asked it to vacate parts of Indian territory “illegally”. “How can anything foreign be in a jugular vein? This is a union territory of India. It’s only relationship with Pakistan is the vacation of illegally occupied territories by that country,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.

In his first public statement since the Pahalgam attack, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India will identify, track and punish every terrorist and their backers. “We will pursue them to the ends of the Earth,” he said at a rally in Bihar. At the same rally, PM Modi made a rare switch from Hindi to English to ensure that the world doesn’t miss a word of his fierce message.