Web Desk

ISLAMABAD:&nbsp;Pakistan&#39;s political and military leadership responded very differently to Indian cross-border strikes in 2019 and in 2025. The Balakot episode of February 2019 was marked by measured retaliation. In May 2025, Islamabad adopted a more aggressive posture. 2019: Measured, collective caution On February 14, 2019, a suicide bombing killed 40 Indian paramilitary personnel in Pulwama, Indian-occupied Kashmir. India blamed Pakistan for the attack while Pakistan denied involvement.&nbsp; On February&nbsp;26, Indian jets bombed what India alleged was a terrorist training center in Balakot, a town in Pakistan&#39;s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. This was the Indian Air Force&#39;s first deep strike across the international boundary since 1971. The attack triggered intensive consultations inside Pakistan. Senior military leaders sought damage assessments and urged a restrained response to avoid uncontrolled escalation. Operation Swift Retort, launched the following day, was designed to demonstrate Pakistan&#39;s military capability while avoiding civilian casualties. The Pakistan Air Force conducted precision strikes in open areas in occupied Kashmir to reassert deterrence without escalating the conflict.&nbsp; When the Indian Air Force attempted to retaliate, Pakistan shot down one of its fighter jets and captured pilot Abhinandan Varthaman, who was later released as a goodwill gesture amid international calls for de-escalation. Key features of Pakistan&#39;s response in 2019 included high-level caution and step-by-step deliberation, a calibrated military response signaling capability rather than seeking escalation, and active diplomacy and national security channels used to cool tensions. Analysts from organizations like the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) and the Carnegie Endowment have&nbsp;noted this approach reflected a deliberate effort to manage the crisis within narrowly defined limits while sending clear deterrent signals. 2025: Unified resolve and a tougher doctrine The May 2025 Indian cross-border strikes, described by Islamabad as coordinated missile, air and drone attacks inside Pakistan, triggered a quick and strong response. The outcome was significant: Pakistan shot down at least six fighter jets, including Rafales, in a single night; a setback that undermined Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s claims of military superiority on the international stage. The National Security Committee condemned the strikes as &quot;acts of war,&quot; authorized &quot;corresponding action&quot; and framed Pakistan&#39;s military response as legitimate self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter. Pakistan&#39;s foreign minister and senior security advisers later signaled a strategic shift, describing a new posture of &quot;quid pro quo plus&quot;;&nbsp;a doctrine allowing responses that exceed the original provocation in scale or severity, particularly if India pursues limited-war strategies below nuclear thresholds. Defense analyst Brig. Waqar Hassan, retired, said the tougher stance was carefully calculated. &quot;Punishment should be commensurate with the objectives and the results,&quot; he explained, noting that responses must be precise, politically coherent and directed to achieve clear military and strategic aims. &quot;Such measures&quot;, he said, &quot;must be accompanied by a concurrent war of narratives,&quot; including diplomacy and public messaging, to reinforce deterrence and shape international perception. Hassan pointed to Pakistan&#39;s operational reach, noting the ability to strike from the east into the hinterland is part of a broader deterrent strategy. He cited growing security cooperation with friendly states in West Asia, which reduces the risk of diplomatic isolation during crises and strengthens Pakistan&#39;s strategic posture. At the same time, he said the nuclear overhang remains a critical constraint, limiting the appetite for uncontrolled conventional escalation and making calibrated, targeted action essential for credibility and stability. What changed between 2019 and 2025? Three factors appear to have driven the shift: increased civil-military cooperation promoting stronger responses; an evolving view of deterrence that emphasizes escalating costs for limited aggression; and rising domestic pressures.&nbsp; Public outrage over civilian casualties and calls for action mean leaders must adopt a tougher stance. Experts say Pakistan&#39;s new strategy is influenced by lessons from 2019, changing threats and the need to signal deterrence to enemy leadership.

Security

Pakistan's response to Indian strikes shifted from measured retaliation in 2019 to decisive military action in 2025, shooting down six jets and adopting "quid pro quo plus" doctrine.

From restraint to resolve: Pakistan’s shifting response to Indian aggression

ISLAMABAD: &nbsp;US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said that &ldquo;seven brand new, beautiful planes were shot down&rdquo; during the Pakistan-India conflict earlier this year. While referring to the aerial encounters between the two countries, the US president said the two countries were &ldquo;going at it&rdquo; in May during which &ldquo;seven planes were shot down.&rdquo; Last month, Pakistan&rsquo;s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif told the United Nations General Assembly that Pakistani forces had turned seven Indian aircraft into &ldquo;scrap and dust.&rdquo; The Indian military has also claimed that it shot down five Pakistani fighter jets, a statement dismissed by Defense Minister Khawaja Asif on X, who termed the claim &ldquo;comical.&rdquo; &nbsp;&ldquo;Seven brand new, beautiful planes were shot down,&rdquo; Trump said while speaking to business leaders in Japan during a dinner. &nbsp; The US president said that he conveyed it to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that &ldquo;we&#39;re not going to do any trade if you&#39;re going to be fighting.&rdquo; The same message was also sent to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif &mdash; whom he termed &ldquo;a very nice man, a very good man&rdquo; &mdash; and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir. &ldquo;And within about 24 hours, that was the end of that,&rdquo; Trump said. &ldquo;It was amazing, actually.&rdquo; &ldquo;A lot of the wars that I stopped were because of tariffs,&rdquo; he said, adding that he was able to do a &ldquo;great service to the world [&hellip;] because of tariffs, because of trade.&rdquo; &nbsp; The US president has in recent weeks also criticized India for continuing to purchase Russian oil, and his administration has imposed tariffs on Indian exports to pressure New Delhi to support efforts for peace in Ukraine.

Americas

US president says a lot of the wars were stopped because of tariffs, adds he was able to do a “great service to the world.”  



'Seven brand new, beautiful planes' shot down during Pakistan-India conflict: Trump

Gaitty Ara Anis

WASHINGTON: Pakistan has strongly rejected India&rsquo;s accusations at the United Nations, saying New Delhi&rsquo;s ruling ideology has transformed the country into what it described as the &ldquo;world&rsquo;s largest factory of hate,&rdquo; fueled by Hindutva extremism and systematic repression in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir. In a right of reply during a UN Security Council debate, Pakistan&rsquo;s Counsellor Gul Qaiser Sarwani called out India&rsquo;s representative for what he termed &ldquo;baseless and diversionary claims,&rdquo; stressing that the situation in Kashmir remains one of &ldquo;custodial killings, enforced disappearances, sexual violence, demographic engineering, and sweeping media blackouts.&rdquo; Sarwani contrasted conditions in Indian-occupied Kashmir with those in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, which he said &ldquo;stands as evidence of Pakistan&rsquo;s commitment to democratic governance,&rdquo; where citizens elect their leadership and &ldquo;enjoy freedoms unimaginable under Indian occupation.&rdquo; He underlined that Jammu and Kashmir is an internationally recognized dispute, stating: &ldquo;Kashmir is not India&rsquo;s internal matter, it never was and never will be. It remains on the UN agenda, and no decree from New Delhi can alter that reality.&rdquo; Reaffirming Pakistan&rsquo;s longstanding position on the UN-mandated plebiscite, Sarwani said it is India that has &ldquo;reneged on every commitment,&rdquo; instead deploying nearly 900,000 troops to enforce control over the region, which he described as &ldquo;the densest military occupation of our time.&rdquo; He added that India&rsquo;s allegations against Pakistan aim to deflect attention from the situation in Kashmir. &ldquo;The mask of democracy slips,&rdquo; Sarwani said, &ldquo;when minorities across India face persecution, Muslims lynched in public, Christians attacked in places of worship, Sikhs vilified, and Dalits dehumanized. The tragedies of Gujarat, Delhi and Manipur speak for themselves.&rdquo;

Foreign Affairs

In a UNSC debate, Pakistan rejected India’s accusations, saying New Delhi’s Hindutva-driven policies fueled repression in Indian-occupied Kashmir and undermine democratic values, while reaffirming Kashmir as UN-recognized dispute requiring a plebiscite.

Pakistan rebuts India at UN, says Hindutva policies eroding democratic values

ISLAMABAD: United States President Donald Trump on Tuesday said that he spoke with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, emphasizing that both discussed the need to have &ldquo;no wars with Pakistan.&rdquo; Speaking at a Diwali celebration, President Trump said he had a &ldquo;great conversation&rdquo; with the Indian leader, focusing mainly on economic cooperation.<div class="fr-embed instagram-embed" style="width: 50%; display: block; max-width: 600px;"><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-0" src="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQGDLJAjca5/embed/captioned/?cr=1&v=14&wp=675&rd=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com&rp=%2Farticles%2F1613#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A111364.90000000596%2C%22ls%22%3A640.0999999940395%2C%22le%22%3A690.7999999821186%7D" allowfullscreen="true" frameborder="0" height="981" scrolling="no" style="background: white; max-width: 540px; width: calc(100% - 2px); border-radius: 3px; border: 1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219); box-shadow: none; display: block; margin: 0px 0px 12px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0px;">&nbsp;</iframe></div> &ldquo;We talked about a lot of things, but mostly the world of trade,&rdquo; the US president said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s very interested in that.&rdquo; Trump went on to add that peace between India and Pakistan was also part of the discussion. &ldquo;Although we did talk a little while ago about, let&rsquo;s have no wars with Pakistan,&rdquo; he said. He further remarked,&nbsp;&ldquo;And I think the fact that trade was involved, I was able to talk about that. And we have no war with Pakistan and India. That was a very, very good thing.&rdquo; &#39;Saved millions of lives&#39;The US president has recently mentioned both South Asian countries while discussing his broader diplomatic efforts to prevent conflicts around the world, including his mediation attempts in the Russia-Ukraine war. Last week, while commenting on statements made by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, President Trump said that he had &ldquo;saved millions of lives&rdquo; by preventing a potential conflict between India and Pakistan. During his address, Trump also referenced reports of aerial encounters between the two countries, stating that &ldquo;seven planes were shot down&rdquo; during tensions between India and Pakistan. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had earlier told the United Nations General Assembly that Pakistani forces had turned seven Indian aircraft into &ldquo;scrap and dust.&rdquo; The Indian military has also claimed that it shot down five Pakistani fighter jets, a statement dismissed by Defense Minister Khawaja Asif on X, who termed the claim &ldquo;comical.&rdquo; The US president has in recent weeks also criticized India for continuing to purchase Russian oil, and his administration has imposed tariffs on Indian exports to pressure New Delhi to support efforts for peace in Ukraine. Earlier this week, Trump reiterated that India would continue to face &ldquo;massive tariffs&rdquo; if it did not halt its imports of Russian oil.

US president says he spoke 'mostly about trade' with the Indian premier; terms no war between India and Pakistan a 'very, very good thing.'


‘No wars with Pakistan,’ Trump tells India’s Modi in Diwali message

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday strongly condemned India for reviving what it described as fabricated and provocative propaganda ahead of upcoming state elections in Bihar and West Bengal, warning that such irresponsible remarks could endanger regional peace and stability.&nbsp;The Pakistani military&rsquo;s media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said it had taken &ldquo;serious notice&rdquo; of recent comments made by Indian military officials, calling them a repeat of &ldquo;delusional claims frequently made during election periods in India.&rdquo;&nbsp;&ldquo;It is regrettable to see the military leadership of a nuclear-armed country issuing irresponsible statements under intense political pressure,&rdquo; the ISPR said.<div class="fr-embed youtube-embed"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/z2uH2mWL1AU" title="India's desperate attempt to rewrite a lost war" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen="" style="width: 100%; height: auto; aspect-ratio: 16 / 9; max-width: 100%; display: block;"></iframe>&nbsp;</div>&nbsp;&ldquo;Such rhetoric has turned the Indian military establishment into a source of ridicule,&rdquo; it added.&nbsp;The ISPR cautioned that &ldquo;unnecessary chest-thumping and unwarranted statements could trigger a cycle of jingoism,&rdquo; which might have dangerous implications for peace and security in South Asia.&nbsp;It also noted that contradictions in the Indian Army&rsquo;s recent press statements were &ldquo;so evident that they do not warrant a detailed response.&rdquo; The statement slammed Indian leaders of attempting to rewrite history with &ldquo;Bollywood-style narratives&rdquo; aimed at shaping domestic opinion ahead of elections.&nbsp;Reaffirming Pakistan&rsquo;s resolve, the ISPR stated that the Pakistan Armed Forces are fully prepared and capable of defending every inch of national territory.&nbsp;&ldquo;Every act of aggression will be met with a swift, resolute, and memorable response,&rdquo; it warned.&nbsp;Referring to the May 2025 confrontation, referred to as Maarka-e-Haq, the ISPR said Indian forces had been &ldquo;decisively defeated,&rdquo; yet Indian leaders continue to deny that outcome.&nbsp;&ldquo;The world now recognizes India as the true face of cross-border terrorism and the epicenter of regional instability,&rdquo; the statement said.&nbsp;Pattern ahead of Indian elections&nbsp;Analysts and international observers have noted a recurring pattern in India, where anti-Pakistan rhetoric intensifies before elections, often used to rally nationalist sentiment and distract from domestic challenges.&nbsp;In May 2024, Germany&rsquo;s public broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) reported that anti-Pakistan sentiment remains &ldquo;an emotive issue in India&rdquo; and serves as &ldquo;a convenient political tool for candidates.&rdquo;&nbsp;Similarly, during the 2019 Pulwama attack and subsequent Balakot airstrikes, which occurred just weeks before India&rsquo;s general elections, The Guardian observed that the escalation &ldquo;played to Prime Minister Modi&rsquo;s advantage,&rdquo; helping his party shift public focus from economic issues.&nbsp;Former Indian intelligence chief A.S. Dulat, in an interview with The Times of India, had described the Pulwama attack as &ldquo;a gift to the BJP ahead of the elections.&rdquo;&nbsp;&ldquo;It was inevitable that something would happen,&rdquo; Dulat had said, suggesting that the timing benefited the ruling party politically.&nbsp;Pakistan calls for restraint and regional stability&nbsp;Pakistan has repeatedly urged India to avoid using baseless allegations and militaristic rhetoric for domestic political gain. Officials maintain that such behavior undermines regional stability and diverts attention from the urgent need for peace and economic cooperation in South Asia.&nbsp;&ldquo;Pakistan remains committed to peace and stability in the region,&rdquo; the ISPR concluded. &ldquo;However, any attempt to violate its sovereignty will be met with a firm and decisive response.&rdquo;

The military’s media wing says the Indian Army’s delusional and provocative statements ahead of state elections reflect political desperation, warning that such reckless rhetoric could endanger regional peace and will be met with firm resolve.

Pakistan condemns India for reviving pre-election propaganda, warns against destabilizing rhetoric

RAWALPINDI: Pakistan Army said on Saturday that India appears to be &ldquo;aching for the next round of confrontation,&rdquo; cautioning that any renewed hostilities would be met with a firm and unrestricted response, the military&rsquo;s media wing said.&nbsp;According to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), &ldquo;delusional, provocative and jingoistic&rdquo; remarks from India&rsquo;s security leadership reflect an effort to create pretexts for aggression. The statement warned that such an approach could have &ldquo;serious consequences for peace and stability in South Asia.&rdquo;&nbsp;ISPR noted that India has long portrayed itself as a victim while &ldquo;stoking violence and perpetrating terrorism&rdquo; in the region.&nbsp;&nbsp;The recent conflicts had shown Pakistan&rsquo;s capability to respond effectively, reminding India of &ldquo;the wreckage of its fighter jets and the wrath of Pakistan&rsquo;s long-range vectors,&rdquo; it added.&nbsp;The military&rsquo;s media wing said Pakistan has now established a &ldquo;new normal of response,&rdquo; describing it as swift, decisive and designed to dispel any belief in geographic immunity.&nbsp;It cautioned that in the event of a conflict, strikes would extend to &ldquo;the farthest reaches of Indian territory.&rdquo;&nbsp;The ISPR statement followed recent remarks from Indian defence officials, warning New Delhi &ldquo;a future conflict might lead to cataclysmic devastation.&rdquo;&nbsp;Indian Air Force Chief Amar Preet Singh claimed India had downed five Pakistani fighter jets, F-16 and JF-17 models, during May&rsquo;s clashes.&nbsp;&nbsp;Separately, Indian Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi also warned that New Delhi would not show the same restraint in any future operation, saying Pakistan must end &ldquo;state-sponsored terrorism.&rdquo;&nbsp;Concluding its statement, ISPR warned that India&#39;s talk of erasing Pakistan from the map was reckless. &ldquo;If such a situation arises, the erasure will be mutual,&rdquo; it said.

Responds to Indian Army and Air Chiefs threatening statements on relaunching Operation Sindoor; says India aching for confrontation; vows swift and decisive response; says erasure will be mutual.

India aching for confrontation, future conflict may lead to ‘cataclysmic devastation’: Pakistan Army

Islamabad: India&#39;s Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday &mdash; in response to Pakistan&rsquo;s mutual defense agreement with Saudi Arabia &mdash; said that the country remained committed to protecting their &ldquo;national interests and ensuring comprehensive national security.&quot; In a statement issued by the India Ministry of External Affairs today, the spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said: &ldquo;We have seen reports of the signing of a strategic mutual defense pact between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.&rdquo; &nbsp;He said that the Indian government was aware of the development, which formalized a long-standing arrangement between the two countries, and it had been &ldquo;under consideration.&rdquo; The government said that would study the implications of development for their national security as well as for &ldquo;regional and global stability.&rdquo;&nbsp; India and Pakistan engaged in a four-day military conflict earlier this year, nearly escalating into a full-blown war. The Ministry of&nbsp;External Affairs said: &ldquo;The government remains committed to protecting India&#39;s national interests and ensuring comprehensive national security in all domains.&quot; Both Islamabad and Riyadh signed a &ldquo;Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement,&rdquo; declaring that any act of aggression against either country would be considered an attack on both. Earlier this month, Israel had targeted leaders of the Palestinian group in Doha, escalating Israeli military action in the region.&nbsp; In response, Arab and Muslim leaders in the world gathered in Doha for an emergency Arab-Islamic summit, reaffirming their &ldquo;collective duty to respond&rdquo; to Israeli military actions.

MEA spokesperson says development formalizing a long-standing arrangement between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia had been “under consideration.”

Pak-Saudi defense pact: India vows national security 

Ayesha Mir

<div class="fr-embed"> </div> In May 2025, India&rsquo;s strike on a civilian area in Pakistan pushed the region to the edge of nuclear war but as tensions soared, Pakistan emerged not just with strategic wins on the battlefield, but with unexpected diplomatic momentum.&nbsp; As Indian media spiraled into exaggerated claims and aggressive narratives, Pakistan projected calm, restraint, and a willingness to engage in dialogue.&nbsp;This measured posture earned Islamabad U.S. mediation, brought renewed global attention to the Kashmir issue, and reset its relationship with Washington.&nbsp; Seizing the moment, Pakistan deepened ties with China, Turkey, Saudi Arabia &mdash; and even made diplomatic inroads with unlikely partners like Afghanistan and Bangladesh.&nbsp; From deft crisis management to a stronger voice at the UN, how did Pakistan shift its global image from isolated and unstable to poised and influential? Ayesha Mir breaks it down in Dossier With Ayesha. <div class="fr-embed"> </div>

Dossier with Ayesha

After India’s strike in May 2025, Pakistan not only avoided escalation but emerged with newfound diplomatic strength, earning U.S. mediation, global attention on Kashmir, and strategic alliances across Asia.

Articles tagged with "Pakistan India Conflict"