• Source:JND
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Pakistan Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar delivered a "positive message" to India on Tuesday, expressing that his country does not believe in "perpetual hostility" and urging New Delhi to do a "sober reflection" on its future ties with Islamabad. Dar stated that Pakistan has always sought "good neighbourly relations" with India, but stressed that Islamabad would never agree to "unilateral approaches or attempts to impose India's will or hegemony."

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"To our east, the relationship with India has historically remained troubled. Pakistan does not believe in perpetual hostility. We seek good neighbourly relations with India on the basis of mutual respect, sovereign equality, and a just and peaceful resolution of the long-standing Jammu and Kashmir dispute," Dar said as quoted by news agency PTI.

The foreign minister explained that Pakistan downgraded ties with India after the 2019 revocation of Article 370 in Kashmir, a decision that Islamabad believed undermined the environment for holding talks between the neighbours.

India has consistently stated its desire for normal, neighbourly relations with Pakistan, emphasising that the responsibility lies with Islamabad to foster an environment free from terror and hostility to enable such engagement. Pakistan, on the other hand, has pledged to take all necessary measures to maintain strategic stability in South Asia and has vowed to respond effectively and decisively to any ill-conceived military actions by India, he said.

The foreign minister also discussed Pakistan's approach to its other neighbours. He claimed Pakistan has consistently sought peaceful, cooperative and good-neighbourly relations with countries in its immediate and extended neighbourhoods. On Afghanistan, Dar said Pakistan has followed a pragmatic approach focused on practical cooperation and averting a humanitarian crisis after the Taliban takeover.

(With Agency Inputs)