New Delhi: In a tough message to Pakistan, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday said India has no intention to escalate tensions with the neighbouring nation but any military attacks on its soil will be met with a “very” firm response.
Jaishankar made the remarks at a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
The external affairs minister said the “barbaric” Pahalgam terror attack compelled India to carry out strikes on “cross-border” terror infrastructure on Wednesday.
“This attack compelled us to respond on May 7 by striking at cross-border terrorist infrastructure. Our response was targeted and measured,” he said.
“It is not our intention to escalate this situation. However, if there are military attacks on us, there should be no doubt that it will be met with a very very firm response,” Jaishankar said.
“As a neighbour and close partner, it is important that you have a good understanding of this situation,” he added.
The Iranian foreign minister landed in New Delhi around midnight Wednesday on a scheduled visit amid the escalating tensions
between India and Pakistan.
Jaishankar and Araghchi co-chaired the 20th India-Iran joint commission meeting that was focused on boosting ties in areas of trade and investment.
“In recent years, our cooperation has progressed in many aspects. There are also situations that we need to address. Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi and President (Masoud) Pezeshkian have met in Kazan in October 2024 and given us guidance on how to develop our ties further,” the external affairs minister said.
It is understood that the Iranian foreign minister called for de-escalation of the situation between India and Pakistan.
On April 26, Pezeshkian dialled Modi and strongly condemned the Pahalgam terror attack.
In the conversation, Pezeshkian called for concerted efforts by countries in the region to eradicate the “roots of terrorism”.“This would allow both sides to consider de-escalation of forces in eastern Ladakh as that alone will lead to the restoration of peace and tranquillity and provide conditions for the progress in our bilateral relationship,”
he added.
On mutual economic ties between Iran and India, the President expressed hope for the expansion of cooperation in trade and infrastructure.
It is learnt that the Chabahar port project figured in the talks between the two foreign ministers.
In this year’s Union budget, India set aside an amount of Rs 100 crore for the Chabahar Port project, underlining its focus on connectivity projects with Iran.
Located in the Sistan-Balochistan province on the energy-rich Iran’s southern coast, the Chabahar port is being developed by India and Iran to boost connectivity and trade ties.