FOREIGN Office spokesman on Thursday very categorically and convincingly responded to the threats being hurled by India. Reacting to the statement of the Indian Army Chief General Deepak Kapoor that his country can fight wars with Pakistan and China simultaneously and that India would finish Pakistan within 96 hours of a war, the spokesman declared at the weekly news briefing that our eastern neighbour must not undermine Pakistan’s capability to defend itself against aggression.
The statement of the Indian Army Chief has shocked not only people in Pakistan and in the region but also to some circles in India that were keen to see improvement in relations between the two countries. In fact, this was not a casual or off-the-cuff remark by General Kapoor but part of the new military doctrine and, therefore, it should be taken very seriously by the authorities concerned in Pakistan and also in China. In the first place, India is alarmingly increasing its military muscle as it has not only started local production of lethal weapons of all sorts through foreign collaboration but has also embarked upon a defence shopping spree. Encouraged by the keenness of the United States and other countries of the West to enter into closer nuclear cooperation with India, the policy makers in New Delhi have also started giving loud thinking to their plans to go for more nuclear tests as part of the programme to give new dimensions to their nuclear and missile programmes. All this confirms widely held belief that the United States is preparing India to take up responsibilities as mini superpower in this part of the world to browbeat not only Pakistan but also keep China under check. It is with this objective that Americans are trying their best to help India consolidate its political, economic and strategic influence in Afghanistan. Secondly, the threat from the Indian Army Chief comes at a time when Pakistan was passing through the most critical juncture of its history and the statement is obviously aimed at multiplying woes of the country. The spokesman has, therefore, done well by inviting attention of the world community towards hegemonic and jingoistic mindset of India that could threaten regional and global peace. Though in the given situation it is unlikely that the influential capitals of the world would pay any serious heed to the caution by Islamabad yet we must mount an aggressive diplomatic campaign to unmask India’s real face. At the same time, our strategists and analysts should go deeper into the statement of General Kapoor and take necessary steps to safeguard vital security interests of the country.
