PM Modi podcast with Lex Fridman: Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the recent attacks in Pakistan, expressing hope that wisdom prevails and Pakistan chooses the path of peace, noting that the people of Pakistan also long for peace. "We sincerely hope that wisdom prevails upon Pakistan and they choose path of peace; even people of Pakistan long for peace," PM Modi said during a podcast with Lex Fridman. When asked about his relations with Islamabad, PM Modi said: "I invited Pakistan for my swearing-in to turn over a new leaf, but each attempt at peace was met with hostility and betrayal".
"Every attempt to foster peace with Pakistan was met with hostility"
PM Modi has said that every attempt to foster peace with Pakistan was met with hostility and betrayal and hoped that wisdom would prevail on the leadership in Islamabad to improve bilateral ties. In a podcast with Fridman released on Sunday, PM Modi recalled that he had specially invited his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif for his swearing-in ceremony in 2014 with the hope that the two countries could turn a new leaf.
We didn't get the desired outcome from Pakistan: PM Modi
PM Modi said he believed that even the people of Pakistan long for peace because they also must be tired of living in strife, unrest and relentless terror where even innocent children are killed and countless lives are destroyed.
The prime minister said his first attempt at improving bilateral relations was a gesture of goodwill. "It was a diplomatic gesture unlike any in decades. The very people who once questioned my approach to foreign policy were taken aback when they learned I had invited all SAARC heads of state and our then President Pranab Mukherjee beautifully captured that historic gesture in his memoir," PM Modi said.
"This was a testament to how clear and confident India's foreign policy had become. This sent a clear message to the world about India's commitment to peace and harmony, but we didn't get the desired outcome," he said.
Proxy war is going on: PM Modi
"A proxy war is going on and this is not an ideology. They are exporting terrorists. Wherever a terror attack occurs in the world, Pakistan finds its involvement somewhere. Even the mastermind of 9/11, Osama Bin Laden, was eventually eliminated in Pakistan. The world knows its terrorist mindset. It has become a problem for the world, not just India... State-sponsored terrorism should end. They have left everything to non-state actors," he noted.
Pakistan terror attacks
A suicide attacker rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into a convoy of paramilitary Frontier Corp (FC) on the national highway in the Noshki area of the province. "Security forces have blocked off all escape routes for the terrorists," PTV News quoted security sources as saying. They added that a clearance operation was underway and would continue “till the last terrorist was eliminated”.
The suicide attack on the Pakistani Army convoy comes days after the BLA hijacked a train carrying more than 400 passengers, travelling from Quetta to Peshawar. After a two-day standoff between the militants and the security forces, the attackers were neutralized and the clearance mission was concluded. Pakistan's Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) provinces are witnessing a major surge in targeted attacks on security forces. There have been over 40 firing raids, andgrenade, suicide bomb attacks in recent months.
(With inputs from agency)