ISLAMABAD, 15 October 2021, (TON): Pakistan has strongly condemned Indian Home Minister Amit Shah’s reported statement in which he threatened the country with so-called “surgical strikes”, saying it will spare no effort in “resolutely thwarting any aggressive designs”.

“Pakistan condemns in strongest terms the irresponsible and provocative statement reportedly made by Indian Home Minister threatening so-called “surgical strikes” in Pakistan,” Foreign Office Spokesperson Asim Iftikhar said in a statement issued in Islamabad on Thursday.

He said “while Pakistan is a peace-loving country, we will spare no effort in resolutely thwarting any aggressive designs.”

The spokesperson recalled that Pakistan’s swift response to India’s Balakot misadventure in 2019, including the downing of Indian combat aircraft and capture of Indian Air Force pilot, fully demonstrated the will, capacity and preparedness of “our armed forces to deter Indian aggression”.

He added that this delusional statement only goes to further demonstrate the BJP-RSS combine’s propensity to stoke regional tensions for both ideological reasons and political expediency, based on enmity towards Pakistan.