After A Milder US, Russia Delivers A Stinging Blow To Pakistan By Welcoming The Strikes

Pakistan suffered another major blow on Monday (3 October) with Russia openly supporting last week's surgical strikes by India's special forces on terror launch pads within Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

Pakistan has been gloating over the ongoing joint military exercises with Russia, and Pakistani commentators and politicians have held up the joint exercises as Pakistan's deepening ties with Russia. But Russian envoy to India, Alexander M Kadakin poured cold water on Pakistan's claims of growing warmth between the two countries by saying that every country has the right to defend itself and that Pakistan should stop cross-border terror.

Immediately after last week's surgical strikes, the United States of America (US) obliquely supported India by stating that Pakistan needs to "take effective action to combat and delegitimise United Nations-designated terrorist individuals and entities, including Lashkar-e-Tayyiba, Jaish-e-Muhammad, and their affiliates".

Kadakin asserted in an interview to CNN News 18 today (3 October) that his country was the only one to state very clearly that the terrorists who attacked the army base at Uri came from Pakistan. The attack on Uri and on the civilians in India amounted to the "greatest human rights violations".

"We welcome the surgical strikes. Every country has the right to defend itself," the envoy said.

On the ongoing joint military exercises between Russia and Pakistan, the envoy said that India should not lose sleep over that. The theme of the exercise is anti-terror and it is in India's interests that Russia teaches Pakistan not to allow terror strikes on India.

With inputs from IANS