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China affirms support for Pakistan amid escalating tensions with India.
Pak foreign minister shared regional updates in a call with Chinese counterpart.
The timing of the release of the statement has raised eyebrows.
New Delhi:
Minutes after Pakistan violated the barely-hours-long ceasefire, with Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah and Gujarat home minister Harsh Sanghavi taking to social media platform X over drone sightings, China has told Pakistan’s foreign minister that Beijing “stands firmly” with Islamabad. The timing of the release of this statement has raised eyebrows.
China’s foreign minister Wang Yi has reportedly told his Pakistani counterpart Ishaq Dar during a telephonic conversation that Beijing stands by Islamabad in upholding “Pakistan’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and national independence.” Immediately after the conversation, Pakistan’s foreign office released a statement confirming the same.
According to the statement, Mr Dar briefed the Chinese foreign minister about the regional situation and the recent military exchange between India and Pakistan in the wake of the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam.
According to a report by news agency Press Trust of India, the Chinese foreign minister “acknowledged Pakistan’s restraint and appreciated its responsible approach under challenging circumstances.”
“He reaffirmed that China, as Pakistan’s All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partner and iron-clad friend, will continue to stand firmly by Pakistan in upholding its sovereignty, territorial integrity, and national independence,” Pakistan’s Foreign Office said.
As per the statement, Ishaq Dar also spoke with the foreign minister of Turkey Hakan Fidan and apprised him of the current situation in the region.
Shortly after the breach of the ceasefire by Pakistan, India released a statement, in which it said, “For the last few hours, there have been repeated violations of the understanding arrived at earlier this evening between the Directors General of Military Operations of India and Pakistan. This is a breach of the understanding arrived at earlier today.”
It added that “The armed forces are giving an adequate and appropriate response to these violations, and we take very, very serious note of these violations. We call upon Pakistan to take appropriate steps to address these violations and deal with the situation with seriousness and responsibility. The armed forces are maintaining a strong vigil on the situation. They have been given instructions to deal strongly with any instances of repetition of the violations of the border along the International Border as well as the Line of Control.”
