Won't tolerate cross-border terrorism, reserve right to respond: Army chief

In a stern message to Pakistan, Chief of Army Staff Gen MM Naravane on Tuesday said India will never tolerate cross-border terrorism and it reserves the right to respond with precision to any terror activity at a time and place of its choosing.

Addressing a press conference ahead of Army Day on January 15, he also said India must be prepared to deal with a "two-front" threat scenario as collusive approach by Pakistan and China was manifesting on the ground.

"Pakistan continues to embrace terrorism as an instrument of state policy. However, we are very clear that we have zero-tolerance for terror and we reserve our right to respond at a time and place of our own choosing and with precision," he said.

He said India has sent a clear message to Pakistan that it will not tolerate any terrorist activities.

Elaborating on growing cooperation between China and Pakistan, the Army chief said India must be prepared to deal with a "two-front" threat scenario suggesting that both may create trouble simultaneously.

"There is no doubt that a collusive threat exists. This is not just something which was part of some strategy paper or loud thought process. It is very much manifesting on the ground," he said.

"There is indeed increased cooperation between China and Pakistan in both military and non-military fields. And a two-front threat is very much something that we have to be prepared to deal with and in dealing with such a threat, we will have to see which is the more serious threat and prioritise and deal with that first," he said.

Talking about Jammu and Kashmir, Gen Naravane said though the situation in hinterland has improved, it has not yet reached a level when the government can contemplate moving troops out of the union territory.

Notwithstanding the coronavirus pandemic, Pakistan has been resorting to unprovoked ceasefire violations along the LoC and making concerted efforts to push militants into Kashmir.

Pakistani hostilities increased after India announced its decision to withdraw the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and divide the state into two union territories in August 2019.