France supports India’s right to ensure its security

ANKARA

France on Tuesday strongly backed India’s right to protect itself against cross-border terrorism.

In a written statement, France’s Foreign Ministry also urged Pakistan to put an end to the operations of terrorist groups formed on its territory.

It also condemned the Feb. 14 suicide car bombing on a convoy of vehicles carrying security personnel in Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir that killed at least 44 Indian paramilitary troops, which the Indian government blamed on Pakistan.

"France, which stands alongside India in the fight against terrorism in all its forms, is fully committed to mobilizing the international community to punish the terrorists responsible for this attack and to block their channels of financing.

"We solemnly call on India and Pakistan to exercise restraint in order to avert any risk of military escalation and to preserve strategic stability in the region," it said.

Earlier, the European Union called for a de-escalation of tensions after Indian warplanes violated Pakistan’s airspace in a pre-dawn attack on Tuesday.

"We are following very closely current developments between India and Pakistan,” said EU Foreign Affairs and Security Policy spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic.

"We remain in contact with both countries, and what we believe is essential is that all exercise maximum restraint and avoid a further escalation of tensions," Kocijancic added.

India said its warplanes bombed a Jaish-e-Mohammad camp located on the Pakistani side of Kashmir's Line of Control. It said “several terrorists” were killed in the attack.

Pakistan Army spokesman Asif Ghafoor said on his Twitter account that the Indian Air Force violated the de facto border that divides the disputed Kashmir Valley between the two countries.

"Indian aircrafts intruded from Muzaffarabad sector. Facing timely and effective response from Pakistan Air Force, [they] released [their] payload in haste while escaping, which fell near Balakot. No casualties or damage," Ghafoor said.

Jammu and Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan region, is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full. A small sliver of Kashmir is also held by China.

Since they were partitioned in 1947, the two countries have fought three wars -- in 1948, 1965 and 1971 -- two of them over Kashmir.

In the Siachen Glacier in northern Kashmir, Indian and Pakistani troops have also fought intermittently since 1984. A cease-fire came into effect in 2003.

Some Kashmiri groups in Jammu and Kashmir have been fighting against Indian rule for independence or for unification with neighboring Pakistan.

Thousands of people have reportedly been killed in the conflict in the region since 1989, according to several human rights organizations.