ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday once again invited India for talks and urged better sense should prevail.
Addressing the nation in the wake of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) shooting down two Indian aircraft inside Pakistani airspace, the premier said, “I wanted to take you into confidence regarding the situation arising since yesterday. We offered India that we are ready to cooperate with them in any kind of investigation after the Pulwama attack. I know the grief the families of [those killed in Pulwama attack] have been going through.”
“Pakistan has suffered casualties in the past so we offered to cooperate with India. Because terrorism is not in Pakistan’s interests,” he added. “We had said that Pakistan would be forced to respond if India carried out aggression.”
“We didn’t take action yesterday morning because we didn’t know the full extent of damage. Otherwise it would have been irresponsible. That’s why we waited,” he explained.
PM Imran said “Our plan from the start has been no casualties for India. The purpose was just to show India that if they can enter our space, we can too.”
“The problem is, where do we go from here? It is crucial that India uses sense,” he asserted.
“My question to the Indian government is that with the weapons you and we have can we afford a miscalculation? If it escalates from here where will it go? It won’t be in Modi’s or my control. I once again invite you to dialogue. Let me say again that better sense should prevail. We should resolve our problems through dialogue,” he asserted.
Earlier today, the PAF shot down two Indian aircraft and arrested two pilots. GEO
