Pakistan had earlier issued a warning to India saying it will respond with "full force" if attacked.
India will use "all instruments at its command" to respond to Pakistan over its role Pulwama terror attack. India's comments came at a time when Islamabad issued a warning that it would respond with "full force" if attacked and Pakistan Army Chief General Qamar Jawed Bajwa visited Pakistani troops deployed at the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir on Friday.
According to Pakistani media, Bajwa instructed the troops "to be ready to face any eventuality."
General Bajwa's visit to LoC comes hours after Army spokesperson Major General Asif Ghafoor's statement at a press conference that Pakistan is "not preparing to initiate anything. We have the right to respond to your preparations for war."
"India will exercise all instruments at its command, whether it is diplomatic or otherwise," Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said in New Delhi.
“India has all options. You need not exhaust all options on day one. This is not a one-week battle. It’s to be undertaken in various forms."
Referring to Islamabad's alleged support for Islamist militant groups, he added, “I think Pakistan is riding a tiger on this issue, and a tiger never spares its own rider."
As many as 40 CRPF personnel died in a terrorist attack on February 14 at Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir.
1. General Qamar Jawed Bajwa visits LoC in Kashmir
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Pakistan Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Jawed Bajwa visited and instructed Pakistani troops deployed at the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir "to be ready to face any eventuality."
General Bajwa's visit to LoC comes hours after Army spokesperson Major General Asif Ghafoor's statement at a press conference that "we are not preparing to initiate anything. We have the right to respond to your preparations for war." He had also claimed that Pakistan does not want an armed conflict but will respond with full force if attacked.
(Image: Reuters)
2. Pakistan a "rogue state": Arun Jaitley
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Describing Pakistan as a "rogue state", Arun Jaitley said it is not acting against perpetrators of the attack, though the guilty have themselves admitted to the attack and were taking credit for it.
Referring to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's speech, Jaitley said, "the head of the government says, give me actionable intelligence. You need an actionable intelligence if it is a blind offence, but here is a man sitting in your own country who owned up to the offence. So when there is a confession...You have people sitting in your own country and admitting to the offence and saying that yes we have done it and taking credit for it".
"India today is extremely angry," he said, adding "in my lifetime, we have seen wars, we have seen human tragedies, we have seen prime ministers assassinated by terrorists. But the kind of anger which has been there, even on previous occasions, the one this time is unprecedented".
3. Don't mess with Pakistan: Pak Army to India
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Pakistan Army spokesperson Major General Asif Ghafoor's said at a press conference that Pakistan is not preparing to initiate anything but has the right to respond to India's preparations for war.
Talking about the possibility of a war between the two nations, Gafoor said: "We do not wish to go to war but please be rest assured should you initiate any aggression- first you shall never be able to surprise us, let me assure you we shall surprise you...We have the ways and the means to attain what is desired. I hope you (India) get this message and don't mess with Pakistan."
4. Pakistan keeps lying and denying
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Pakistan maintained a belligerent stand and levelled various allegations against India, giving wrong and misleading details. During the entire press meet, Gafoor remained in a denial mode about his country's involvement in Pulwama terror attack even though Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terror outfit, based in Pakistan, has claimed the responsibility for it in a statement.
India has asserted that since JeM, which is based in Pakistan, had itself claimed responsibility for Pulwama attack, there was no more evidence required.
The UN, the US, and several other major world powers have held JeM responsible for the attack. He also claimed that Pakistan was not being isolated internationally, even at a time when the entire international community is mounting pressure on the country to act against terror infrastructure existing in the country.
5. FATF pulls up Pakistan on failure to curb finances of terror groups
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The global terror financing watchdog Financial Action Task Force said Pakistan has not done enough to curb the finances of terror groups like the Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba. This means Pakistan continues to remain in what is called the 'grey list', making it hard for the country to get international loans.
Pakistan has made only "limited progress" on curbing money laundering and terrorism financing, failing to show a proper understanding of the risks posed by Islamic State, Al Qaeda and others, the Paris-based FATF said.
FATF strongly condemned the Pulwama terror attack at its plenary meeting, which concluded in Paris on Friday.
