Standoff with India showed Pakistan will not compromise on independence: Envoy

​​​​ANKARA/ISTANBUL

The Pakistani envoy to Ankara said Tuesday that recent hostilities with New Delhi demonstrated that his country will not compromise its independence.

Yusuf Junaid told journalists at the embassy’s residence that immediately after the April 22 Pahalgam attack, India accused Pakistan without evidence.

He noted that the Pakistani government sent condolences for those killed and announced that it was open to a reliable and transparent investigation, but India did not respond to the offer.

Junaid emphasized that Pakistan gave a strong response to India's attacks in defense of its territorial integrity and sovereignty, saying Pakistan acted with restraint to prevent the conflict from escalating.

He said Pakistan had shown the world it would not compromise its independence during the process, and the solution lies in diplomacy and peace.

Junaid said Pakistan had accepted a ceasefire and would abide by it, provided it was not provoked.

The military escalation began between the two nuclear neighbors on May 6, when India fired missiles inside Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir, hitting what New Delhi said were "nine terror locations," triggering retaliation on May 10 by Islamabad, which hit 26 Indian military targets inside its eastern neighbor as well as in Indian-administered Kashmir.

But the US mediated a ceasefire on May 10. The two rival militaries last week decided to continue “confidence-building measures to reduce alertness level.”

Following the Pahalgam attack by unidentified gunmen in Indian-administered Kashmir, which left 26 people dead and triggered the escalation, India unilaterally suspended a decades-old Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan, which continues to remain in abeyance.