On Saturday, Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar declared that Islamabad would soften its stance if India stops attacking. He made it clear, though, that Pakistan military is on the defensive and only taking measures in a very limited capacity.
Dar's statement, which was seconded by another Pakistani minister, came as the two countries intensified a conflict in which both sides have been firing missiles at one another's military facilities within the past 12 hours, worsening the already deteriorating situation.
"Pakistan will de-escalate if India halts attacks. But if India makes any more attacks, our retaliation will follow," Dar stated.
He explained Pakistan is acting defensively, terming the civil-military leadership's actions as proportional. "Many more measures can be taken, and we are ready for that, but at least for the time being, this is the bare minimum response, which will linger for some time," Dar said.
He also condemned India's moves, calling them a "tamasha (circus)" in the last few days. Dar repeated, "We have no option but to respond to India's military action," and declared that Pakistan would not let India exercise hegemony. "This operation we initiated today will ultimately come to an end. It all depends on what India desires," he added.
On a similar note, Information Minister Atta Tarar also indicated de-escalation was in Indian hands. "It is in the hands of India… If India de-escalates, we will follow," Tarar said to BBC when asked whether Pakistan would de-escalate.
Tarar added that Pakistan army troops were deployed at borders in reaction to Indian military movement.
Dar, who is also the deputy prime minister, justified Pakistan's action in retaliating after an attack on the Nur Khan Air Base. "Pakistan had no option. Our civil-military leadership made a decision to respond after the attack. No patience anymore. We are only giving them a response," Dar explained.
The tension between the two countries rose after India had carried out precision strikes on terror launchpads in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) as a retaliatory measure against the April 22 Pahalgam attack that was attributed to cross-border terrorism.
Pakistan retaliated by firing a new wave of drone attacks at 26 sites in India, from Jammu and Kashmir to Gujarat. Pakistan's defense ministry claimed that efforts to attack crucial installations such as airports and airbases were successfully repelled.
During the early hours of Saturday, Pakistan alleged that three of its airbases were attacked by Indian missiles and drones.
In reaction to these events, India's Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri commented on the situation, saying that India had responded to Pakistan's "provocative" and "escalatory" behavior in a calibrated manner. Misri also denounced Pakistan's campaign of targeting innocent civilians and civilian infrastructure in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab.
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