India rejected what it called “baseless allegations” by Pakistan that it had aggravated recent clashes between Pakistan and the Taliban.
Speaking at a weekly briefing Thursday, Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesman Randhir Jaiswal dismissed the claims and said Pakistan was attempting to blame others for its own actions.
“We reject such baseless allegations,” Jaiswal said. “It has become second nature for Pakistan to blame India for its misdeeds.”
He also said Pakistan lacks credibility on cross-border terrorism, referring to what India describes as Pakistan’s long history of supporting militant groups.
Tensions have escalated along the Afghanistan–Pakistan border in the past two weeks, with both sides exchanging artillery fire, airstrikes and accusations of casualties. The clashes began on February 26 and have continued intermittently along the disputed Durand Line.
Pakistan has said its military operations target militant groups it claims operate from Afghanistan’s territory, including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which Islamabad says has carried out attacks inside Pakistan.
The Taliban have rejected those accusations, calling TTP an internal matter for Pakistan.
The Taliban Ministry of Defense has said that 327 Pakistani soldiers have been killed in “retaliatory operations” along the border, claims that could not be independently verified.
India has also condemned Pakistani airstrikes in Afghanistan, saying the attacks caused civilian casualties and violated Afghanistan’s sovereignty.
Pakistan has claimed that its attacks and airstrikes have killed at least 580 Taliban members. The Taliban defense ministry in a statement on Monday called the numbers “baseless”.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has urged both sides to de-escalate tensions and resolve their differences through dialogue.
