NEW YORK, May 7. /TASS/. Pakistan will not escalate tensions in the conflict with India if New Delhi ceases its Sindoor military operation and other aggressive moves, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif told Bloomberg Television.
"We have been saying all along in the last fortnight that we’ll never initiate anything hostile towards India. But if we're attacked, we'll respond. If India backs down, we will definitely wrap up this tension," Asif stated.
Asked by the host whether talks were possible, the minister replied that he was not aware of any such potential engagements.
India’s Defense Ministry reported that its armed forces had launched Operation Sindoor and struck nine targets in Pakistan. According to the statement, the strikes targeted locations from which terrorist attacks against India were planned and directed. The ministry noted that the operation was in response to the barbaric terrorist assault in Pahalgam, which killed 25 Indian citizens and one Nepali national.
According to the Pakistani Foreign Ministry, eight people were killed in the Indian strikes and 35 others were wounded. Pakistan’s army reported that five Indian fighter jets — including MiG-29s, Su-30s, and three Rafale aircraft — were shot down.