Pakistan Escalates Anti-India Rant To Get International Community’s Ear

Pakistan, at the receiving end of strong anti-terror and retaliatory strikes by Indian security forces, has once again warned of an escalation of the border conflict.

The warning, coming when British foreign secretary Boris Johnson is visiting that country, is another desperate bid by Pakistan to internationalise the Kashmir issue.

Outgoing Pakistan army chief Raheel Sharif said today (24 November) his forces were capable of teaching India “a lesson” if border tensions escalated. Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who convened a meeting attended by the naval and air chiefs to review the situation along the Line of Control (LoC), called upon the international community to defuse the tension between the two countries.

But Sharif's actual intent became clear from a statement issued after today's meeting. It quoted him as saying that "India was trying to divert the attention of the international community from the grave human rights violations, massacres and atrocities being committed by the Indian security forces in Kashmir.” The Pakistan air chief Sohail Aman also called for a resolution of the Kashmir issue.

This has been a long-standing tactic of Pakistan: provoke India by carrying out terror strikes and then hold up retaliatory measures taken by India as evidence of India's belligerence that could trigger an outbreak of hostilities between the two nuclear weapons-armed neighbours. Pakistan hopes that the international community, alarmed at the prospect of an outbreak of even a limited nuclear war in the volatile region, would then intervene and exercise restraint.

This tactic has clearly not been working for them now, not only because India's retaliation has been, unlike in the past, robust and inflicting a heavy toll on Pakistan but also because the international community has seen through the sinister game plan of Pakistan, which stands globally isolated today.

This is more than evident from Johnson's statement that while his country desires an end to the border conflict, Britain will not "prescribe a solution or act as a mediator" in the conflict over the "disputed" region.

Pakistan can draw no solace from Johnson's statement.

Also, Pakistan is having to contend itself with the British foreign secretary's visit after British Prime Minister Theresa May visited India, spoke enthusiastically about strengthening ties and trade between the two countries, and gave Pakistan a miss.