Ball now in India's court, says Pakistan on de-escalating tensions

Pakistan on Wednesday said "the ball is now in India's court" following Islamabad's "peace gesture" of releasing an Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot but warned that the situation will "go bad" if New Delhi decides to opt for further escalation.

The remarks were made by Asif Ghafoor, the Director General of Pakistan Army's media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), to CNN.

Tensions between the two neighbours heightened following the February 14 Kashmir suicide bombing that killed 40 CRPF troopers which was claimed by the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). India retaliated by bombing JeM's biggest training camp in Balakot, Pakistan.

Later, Islamabad captured an IAF Wing Commander after a February 27 dogfight between Indian and Pakistani Air Force. He was released on March 1 as a "peace gesture" by Pakistan.

"We feel that now the ball is in the Indian court. Should they decide to escalate more, the situation will go bad," Ghafoor told CNN.

Asked whether India and Pakistan were close to war, he said: "We were I would say close to war because when they (India) violated the airspace under token aggression, we went for response.

"Now it is up to India whether they take that (IAF pilot release) as a peace gesture and move forward towards de-escalation or continue the agenda that they have."

Talking about the situation on the Line of Control (LoC), Ghafoor said: "Along the Line of Control (LoC) we're are eyeball to eyeball. There is presence of troops at the LoC for decades. But post the Indian aggression and our response the safeguards have been taken by both side."

He added that troops had been increased "because it is natural as part of military planning. When the situation gets hot there are safeguards. Those safeguards are in place on both sides".

Speaking about the Balakot raids, in which New Delhi said that a large number of terrorists were killed, Ghafoor claimed that there were no causalties.

"Their (Indian) claims are false and I believe lately there is an announcement from their side also that they cannot claim any casualty.

"Anybody who operates from Pakistan, we feel, that is not in the interest of Pakistan. Instead of blaming Pakistan, it is time that the world should assist and facilitate Pakistan in getting rid of such organisations," he said.

Asked if the Kashmir attack triggered the tensions, Ghafoor said the answer lied in the UN Human Rights Commission report which highlighted "Indian atrocities in occupied Kashmir".

"The world has to see what is forcing the Kashmiri youth to go towards violence. So instead of looking towards framed allegation for this incident, India also has to look inward...

"We have to move towards resolution of Kashmir, because this issue is a flashpoint for peace in the region," he added.

--IANS

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