Iran’s foreign minister was in Pakistan on Monday to try and mediate in the escalation between Islamabad and New Delhi after last month’s deadly attack on tourists in the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir.
Abbas Araghchi's visit was the first by a foreign dignitary since tensions flared in the wake of the April 22 massacre of 26 tourists, which India blames on Pakistan. Tehran has offered to help ease tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors, said The Associated Press.
Pakistan's military has been on high alert after Cabinet Minister Attaullah Tarar cited credible intelligence indicating that India could attack. Pakistan has denied any role in the massacre of mostly Indian tourists, and offered to cooperate with a credible international investigation. India has so far not accepted the offer and several world leaders have urged both sides to exercise restraint and avoid further escalation.
Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, who is due to meet with Araghchi, welcomed mediation to defuse the tensions with India. Since last week, Dar said he'd spoken to over a dozen foreign dignitaries, including US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
“We will not be the first to take any escalatory step,” Dar said in Islamabad, but added that he had warned the international community that should there be “any act of aggression by India, Pakistan will resolutely defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
He accused the Indian air force of attempting to breach Pakistani airspace on April 28. Pakistan scrambled aircraft and forced Indian jets to turn back, he said. There was no immediate comment from India on those claims.
Kashmir is split between India and Pakistan and claimed by both in its entirety. The two countries have fought two of their three wars over the Himalayan region and their ties have been shaped by conflict, aggressive diplomacy and mutual suspicion, mostly due to their competing claims over Kashmir.
The latest flare-up led the two countries to expel each other’s diplomats and nationals, as well as the shuttering of airspace.
On Monday, Pakistan's Information Minister Attaullah Tarar led a group of journalists to the mountain village of Bella Noor Shah, near Muzaffarabad — the main city in the Pakistan-administered Kashmir — where he said New Delhi had falsely claimed the presence of a militant training camp.
Residents of the village told reporters they had never seen any such camp in the area.
“It is clear there is no truth to the Indian claim,” Tarar said.
Also Monday, Pakistan’s military said it test-fired a short-range missile, the second such test launch after a medium-range missile on Saturday.
The military said that the Fatah surface-to-surface missile has a range of 120 kilometers (75 miles) and was launched from an undisclosed location. Such missiles are never fired toward India, and usually end up reaching the Arabian Sea or the deserts of southern Balochistan province.
