Latest news with #PakistanIndiaConflict
Arab News
07-07-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Pakistan army chief rejects Indian claims of Chinese help in May conflict
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's army chief on Monday rejected recent Indian military claims Islamabad received real-time support from China during the May 2025 conflict between the two nuclear-armed neighbors, calling the insinuations 'factually incorrect' and a 'shoddy attempt' to deflect from its battlefield failures. The remarks came during an address by Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, Pakistan's army chief, to graduating officers at the National Defense University in Islamabad. Last week, Indian Army Deputy Chief Lt. Gen. Rahul Singh alleged at a defense forum in New Delhi that during the May fighting, China had provided Pakistan with 'live inputs' about key Indian military positions. Singh did not detail the evidence behind the claim. In an interview with Arab News last month, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif denied any direct Chinese military involvement during the May 7-10 conflict. 'Insinuations regarding external support in Pakistan's successful Operation Bunyan Al Marsoos are irresponsible and factually incorrect,' Munir said, according to a statement from the military's media wing, referring to the name of the Pakistani military response to Indian attacks on May 10. He described the allegations as reflecting 'a chronic reluctance to acknowledge indigenous capability and institutional resilience developed over decades of strategic prudence.' 'Naming other states as participants in the purely bilateral military conflagration is also a shoddy attempt at playing camp politics and desperately trying that India remains the beneficiary of larger geopolitical contestation as the so-called net security provider in a region which is getting increasingly weary of its hegemonic and extremist Hindutva ideology.' Munir said India's failure to achieve its stated goals during the conflict highlighted shortcomings in planning and capability. 'India's inability to achieve its stated military objectives during Operation Sindoor, and the subsequent attempt to rationalize this shortfall through convoluted logic, speaks volumes about its lack of operational readiness and strategic foresight,' he said. The Indian government and military have not yet responded to Munir's remarks. Tensions between the two countries escalated after a deadly April 2025 attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir. New Delhi blamed Pakistan for the assault, which Islamabad denied. In early May, the two sides engaged in a four-day war involving drones, missiles, and artillery fire — their worst clash in decades — before a ceasefire was brokered by the United States. Pakistan said its armed forces launched Operation Bunyan Al Marsoos in response to Indian strikes on civilian and military infrastructure. India, for its part, claimed it had targeted militant camps and infrastructure inside Pakistan. In his speech, Munir warned that any future misadventure would be met with a swift and forceful response. 'Any attempt to target our population centers, military bases, economic hubs and ports will instantly invoke a 'deeply hurting and more than reciprocal response,'' he said. 'The onus of escalation will squarely lie on the strategically blind, arrogant aggressor.'
Khaleej Times
19-06-2025
- Politics
- Khaleej Times
Trump hosts Pakistani army chief, disagrees with Modi over India-Pakistan war mediation
US President Donald Trump hosted Pakistan's army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir at the White House on Wednesday in an unprecedented meeting that risked worsening a disagreement with India over the president's claim that he stopped last month's conflict between the nuclear-armed South Asian foes. The lunch meeting was the first time a US president had hosted the head of Pakistan's army at the White House unaccompanied by senior Pakistani civilian officials. Trump said he was honoured to meet Munir and that they had discussed Iran, which he said Pakistan knew better than most. Trump told reporters he had thanked Munir for ending the war with India, for which he also praised Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who he spoke to on Tuesday night. "Two very smart people decided not to keep going with that war; that could have been a nuclear war," Trump told reporters. Pakistan's military said in a statement that the two discussed trade, economic development, and cryptocurrency during the two-hour meeting and also exchanged views on tensions between Israel and Iran. "President Trump expressed keen interest in forging a mutually beneficial trade partnership with Pakistan based on long-term strategic convergence and shared interests," the army said. Munir had been expected to press Trump not to enter Israel's war with Iran and seek a ceasefire, Pakistani officials and experts said. A section of Pakistan's embassy in Washington represents Iran's interests in the United States, as Tehran does not have diplomatic relations with the U.S. Pakistan has condemned Israel's airstrikes against Iran, saying they violate international law and threaten regional stability. The meeting represented a major boost in US-Pakistan ties, which had largely languished under Trump and his predecessor Joe Biden, as both courted India as part of efforts to push back against China. Asked earlier what he wanted to achieve from meeting Munir, Trump told reporters: "Well, I stopped a war ... I love Pakistan. I think Modi is a fantastic man. I spoke to him last night. We're going to make a trade deal with Modi of India. "But I stopped the war between Pakistan and India. This man was extremely influential in stopping it from the Pakistan side, Modi from the India side and others," he said. "They were going at it - and they're both nuclear countries. I got it stopped." White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said Trump hosted Munir after he called for the president to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for preventing a nuclear war between India and Pakistan. NO MEDIATION Trump had said last month that the neighbours agreed to a ceasefire after talks mediated by the U.S., and that the hostilities ended when he urged the countries to focus on trade instead of war. However, Modi told Trump in their call on Tuesday that the ceasefire was achieved through talks between the Indian and Pakistani militaries and not U.S. mediation, India's most senior diplomat, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, said in a statement. Pakistan has thanked Washington for playing a mediating role, however, while India has repeatedly denied any third-party mediation. Tuesday's phone call between Modi and Trump was the two leaders' first direct exchange since the May 7-10 conflict. "PM Modi told President Trump clearly that during this period, there was no talk at any stage on subjects like India-U.S. trade deal or U.S. mediation between India and Pakistan," Misri said. "Talks for ceasing military action happened directly between India and Pakistan through existing military channels, and on the insistence of Pakistan. Prime Minister Modi emphasised that India has not accepted mediation in the past and will never do." Misri said Modi and Trump had been due to meet on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada but Trump left a day early due to the Middle East situation. Trump asked Modi if he could stop by the U.S. on his return from Canada, Misri said, but the Indian leader expressed his inability to do so due to a pre-decided schedule. The heaviest fighting in decades between India and Pakistan was sparked by an April 22 attack in Indian Kashmir that killed 26 people. New Delhi blamed "terrorists" backed by Pakistan, a charge Islamabad denies. Pakistan has previously said the ceasefire happened after its military returned a call the Indian military initiated. On May 7, Indian jets bombed what New Delhi called "terrorist infrastructure" sites across the border, triggering tit-for-tat strikes spread over four days in which both sides used fighter jets, missiles, drones and artillery. Michael Kugelman, of the Asia Pacific Foundation think tank, said India-U.S. ties, which have thrived in recent years, could suffer if Trump continued to make remarks about a U.S. role in the ceasefire and offered U.S. mediation on Kashmir, a Himalayan territory India and Pakistan both claim. "For Delhi, it all boils down to an age-old question: How much can it tolerate US-Pakistan cooperation without having it spoil US-India relations — a partnership that's thrived in recent years despite continued US-Pakistan links," he said.
Arab News
12-06-2025
- Business
- Arab News
Pakistan urges EU to continue GSP+, raises alarm over India's water treaty violations
KARACHI: A high-level Pakistani delegation visiting Brussels on Thursday urged European Union officials to support the continuation of Pakistan's preferential trade access under the GSP+ scheme, while also raising concern over India's alleged violations of the Indus Waters Treaty. The delegation, led by former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, met with Bernd Lange, chair of the European Parliament's International Trade Committee, to discuss regional tensions following a recent military escalation with India, the worst confrontation between the nuclear-armed neighbors in decades. The group previously visited Washington and London as part of a broader diplomatic effort to rally international support after the conflict in which the two nations exchanged drones, missiles, and artillery strikes between May 7-10 before a ceasefire was announced. Since then, both countries have launched diplomatic offensives to present their narratives on the conflict and its causes. 'We just had a meeting with their [EU] trade representative, where we conveyed Pakistan's message of peace,' Bhutto Zardari told reporters after the meeting. 'In that context, we specifically raised the decisions related to the Indus Waters Treaty, which are violations of international law, and in the EU context, they strongly believe in respecting treaties and adhering to international law. So, in that context, we pitched our case.' The 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, brokered by the World Bank, governs the distribution of water from the Indus River system between India and Pakistan. Islamabad has expressed alarm in recent months over what it sees as India's unilateral actions affecting river flows, warning that any withdrawal from or violation of the treaty could destabilize water access for millions of people in the region. Bhutto Zardari emphasized that Pakistan seeks engagement over confrontation with India, citing terrorism, the longstanding Kashmir territorial dispute, and water issues as areas that require dialogue. 'There should be engagement with India, whether on the issue of terrorism, the Kashmir dispute, or, of course, the critical issue of water, so that solutions can be found,' he said. Bhutto Zardari also thanked the European Union for expressing condolences over Pakistani casualties in the recent clashes with India and praised the bloc's commitment to international norms. 'If you look at this recent conflict, the violation of international law has been committed by one side, and that side is not Pakistan,' he said. Musadiq Malik, Pakistan's federal minister for water resources and another member of the delegation, warned EU officials of the wider implications of undermining water treaties. 'If India is given the right to exit the Indus Waters Treaty, then 70 percent of the world's countries that are lower riparian, whose populations depend on drinking water, agriculture, and life itself, will face destruction,' Malik said. He urged the international community to preserve a rules-based global order. 'Because if we do not, remember, in the Wild West, the one with the faster gun ruled,' he added. Former ambassador Jalil Abbas Jilani, also part of the delegation, said the team had requested continued EU support for Pakistan under the Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+), which allows duty-free or low-duty access for developing countries to the European market in exchange for progress on human rights, labor standards, environmental protection, and good governance. 'We requested them to continue their support for GSP+, as they have in the past,' Jilani said. 'We hope the European Union will take into consideration Pakistan's need for the GSP+ status and will play a role in its continuation.' The current GSP+ arrangement, which has significantly boosted Pakistan's textile exports to the EU, is due for review as the bloc finalizes the next phase of its trade preference program. The scheme has played a key role in supporting Pakistan's exports, particularly in the garment sector, which employs millions. Pakistan GSP+ benefits were extended last year until 2027.
Arab News
11-06-2025
- Business
- Arab News
Pakistan hikes defense budget 20 percent following conflict with India, but overall spending is cut
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has hiked defense spending by 20 percent following last month's deadly conflict with India. The government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced the increase Tuesday as part of the budget for the fiscal year 2025-26, in which overall spending will be cut by 7 percent to 17.57 trillion rupees ($62 billion). Pakistan and India were pushed to the brink of war earlier this year after a gun massacre of tourists in Indian-controlled Kashmir, marking the biggest breakdown in relations between them since 2019. Weeks of tension followed, culminating in missile and drone strikes that resulted in dozens of fatalities on both sides of the border. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said the government was allocating 2.55 trillion rupees ($9 billion) for defense compared with 2.12 trillion rupees in the previous budget. India in February increased its defense spending by 9.5 percent. Sharif told the Cabinet: 'All economic indicators are satisfactory. After defeating India in a conventional war, now we have to go beyond it in the economic field as well.' Opposition members of the National Assembly verbally abused Aurangzeb, chanting slogans, throwing scrunched-up copies of the budget at him, whistling, and banging their desks as he gave his address. The coming year's defense allocation is considerably more than the government's expenditure on higher education, agricultural development, and mitigating climate-related risks, to which Pakistan is especially prone.
Washington Post
10-06-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
Pakistan to boost defense spending after military showdown with India
ISLAMABAD – Pakistan announced on Tuesday a plan to significantly increase its defense spending, a month after a military confrontation with India that brought the nuclear-armed rivals to the brink of war. Addressing the lower house of parliament, Pakistani Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said the defense budget would rise by almost 20 percent, to $9 billion. It would be one of the largest increases in decades and will require the government to slash subsidies and other spending. Defense should be prioritized, Aurangzeb told lawmakers, to meet what he called a 'historic moment.' Pakistan's parliament still needs to approve the budget, but the vote is viewed by analysts as a formality. Pakistani officials said they have been offered a range of new military equipment by China — their chief international backer — including fighter jets, missile defense systems and high-tech monitoring aircraft. During the hostilities last month, India struck targets deep inside Pakistan, raising questions about the effectiveness of the country's air defenses. Among the sites hit was an air base in Rawalpindi, where the military is headquartered. Pakistan's defense budget will still be much smaller than that of its more powerful neighbor: India allocates around $80 billion for military spending and is debating a further increase. 'There is a staggering asymmetry in defence economics between India and Pakistan,' wrote political scientist Farrukh Saleem in the News International, a Pakistani newspaper. But in May's aerial combat, 'efficiency trumped extravagance,' he wrote, echoing a widespread sentiment in Pakistan that the country had emerged victorious. Pakistan claimed to have downed at least five Indian warplanes; a Post analysis found at least two French-made fighter jets appeared to have crashed. India recently acknowledged the loss of aircraft but did not provide a number. Officials in Islamabad see the Indian losses as proof that their cheaper Chinese equipment can hold its own against Western technology. Unlike past deals to purchase F-16 fighter jets from the United States, 'Pakistan's defense partnership with China features flexibility and it ranges from direct payments to deferred ones, to strategic gifting,' Pakistani military analyst Hasan Askari Rizvi said. That flexibility is key for Pakistan, which is still recovering from one of its worst economic crises in decades. As inflation soared to record levels in 2023, officials were forced to seek another bailout from the International Monetary Fund, which is still in the process of being released. Rizvi said the increase in defense spending is unlikely to draw domestic criticism, even if it necessitates painful cuts. 'National survival has always overridden the financial debate,' he said. The budget proposed Tuesday reduces total spending by around seven percent. Miftah Ismail, a former Pakistani finance minister, said the government should do its part by slashing 'excessive' salaries of civil servant and elected officials. 'Modernizing our armed forces is essential,' he said. 'But the key is spending wisely.' In a speech Tuesday, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif acknowledged 'the sacrifices the common man has made.' Many in the country now ask what 'the wealthy groups have contributed,' Sharif said, adding: 'This is a question that the elite, including me, have to answer.' Noack reported from Paris.
