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ISLAMABAD, Apr 29 (APP):Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar on Tuesday said that Pakistan would not make first strike but it would respond forcefully to any aggression by India.
Addressing the Senate session, he said the country remains united across political and military lines, as reflected in a joint message from the National Security Committee and now echoed in Parliament.
Ishaq Dar thanked senators from all parties, including the opposition and government members, for finalizing a resolution in response to the situation. He called the resolution a unified move and said it sends a strong message globally against India.
The deputy PM while sharing the details of Pakistan’s diplomatic outreach told lawmakers that, “As of now, we’ve spoken to the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, China, the United Kingdom, Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Hungary, except in the case of Qatar, where I spoke directly to the prime minister.”
“I walked them through what happened, India’s psyche, its history and our concerns about what intentions it may have in light of that history,” he added.
Dar pointed to past incidents like the Pulwama attack, noted that New Delhi had used the incident as a pretext to revoke Article 370, which granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir.
He firmly denied Pakistan’s involvement in the Pahalgam incident, stating, “What we do say with full confidence is that Pakistan has nothing to do with this [attack].”
He said China and Türkiye have expressed their support for Pakistan during detailed discussions.
He warned that India might be looking to escalate tensions, said that Pakistan would not initiate any conflict. “If India acts aggressively, we will respond accordingly,” he added.
Dar also claimed that India had been attempting to alter the 1960 Indus Water Treaty, for the past two years, citing changing circumstances.
“I have my doubt, much like other people, that this drama was staged to suspend this treaty,” he said while referring to the Pahalgam attack.
Ishaq Dar said that there was no mention of the Indus Waters Treaty in the Indian demarche, but in a separate letter from India, it has been written that the situation had changed, we were suspending it.
He said this would be unprecedented, as the treaty remained intact even during past wars. He emphasized that Pakistan would treat any action on water as a serious threat.
Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said the National Security Committee has made it clear that any interference with Pakistan’s water rights would be considered an act of war. He added that there would be no compromise on the Indus Water Treaty, and an inter-ministerial meeting has already been held to discuss the matter. Dar said that dossiers are being prepared for international briefings within 48 hours.