Pakistan’s defense minister on Friday declared his country innocent in a terrorist attack that killed 26 people this week on India-controlled Kashmir territory, saying an international investigation into the attack is needed.
In an interview, Minister Kawaja Muhammad Asif said the country is “ready to cooperate” with “any investigation conducted by international inspectors.”
The minister’s remarks appeared to aim to ease tensions with India after armed extremists attacked tourist groups on Tuesday near Pahargam, a southern Kashmir town on Tuesday. For years it has been the most deadly terrorist attack on Indian-controlled land.
Since then, India has moved swiftly to take action against Pakistan. Pakistan controls parts of Kashmir, including closing border intersections and suspending important water agreements. Indian officials say they suspect at least two Pakistani nationals were involved in the attack.
Asif said India used the aftermath of the terrorist attack as an excuse to suspend the water treaty and for domestic political purposes. India is taking steps to punish Pakistan, he said.
Pakistani officials have called on the Trump administration to mediate the conflict.
“We don’t want this war to burn because burning this war could cause disasters in this area,” Asif said.
The last major militant attack in the Indian part of Kashmir took place in 2019, when dozens of Indian security personnel were killed. After that attack, India launched airstrikes in Pakistan.
Washington officials believe the attack in Kashmir this week was not attributed to any group this week. A little-known group called the Resistance Front reportedly claims responsibility.
However, the US and other countries are wary of the aftermath of the attack. The loss of life has prompted sharp action from India, and Western officials are worried that tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbors could be out of control.
Still, Trump administration officials have expressed their support for India. Vice President JD Vance was in India this week. This is a trip that came after National Intelligence Director Tarshi Gabbard gave a speech last month in New Delhi on the importance of international peace.
Pakistan and India both closed their border crossings and took action against diplomats. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said this week that his country will punish “all terrorists and their supporters.”
“The Indian spirit will never be broken by terrorism,” he said.
Indian officials say the group that argued liability for the attack was represented by Rashkar e Taiba, the group behind the 2008 Mumbai attack.
Mr. Asif disputed the allegations. He said that Rashkar e Tayba was “abolized” and had no capacity to plan or carry out attacks from Pakistan-controlled territories.
“They’ve finished. They don’t have a setup in Pakistan,” he said. “These people, whatever remains, they are contained. Some of them are under house arrest, some of which are in custody. They are not active at all.”
US officials say Lashkar Etaiba has shown signs of activity in recent years, and its leader lives in Pakistan’s public opinion.
Asif suggested that the attacks could be carried out by local separatist groups in Kashmir and seek more local control.
He added that Pakistan does not support Indian separatist groups. However, other Pakistani officials have said that this is not the case in Kashmir. The Pakistani Army Secretary last week called it the “jugular vein” of Kashmir and said, “The Kashmir brothers will not leave it to a heroic struggle of opposition to Indian occupation.”
Mr Asif also suggested, without evidence, that the attack could be a “fake flag” carried out by the Indian government to cause a crisis.
He said Pakistan has nothing to gain from terrorist attacks on civilians. The Indian government added that it was using it to escape from the water treaty with its supporters.
The World Bank negotiated the Indus Waters Treaty signed by India and Pakistan in 1960. By suspending the treaty, India was able to at some point restrict the river flow to Pakistan, blocking the country’s water sources for irrigation and human consumption.
Asif, who previously served as Pakistan’s water supply minister, said over the past decade India had been trying to escape from the treaty, a source of stability in the region.
“They were making excuses. They were causing problems that weren’t there,” he said. “They have now found an excuse to get out of this arrangement.”
Mujib Mashal contributed a report from New Delhi.
