India has no intention to escalate the situation with Pakistan but if there are military attacks on the country, then it will be met with a “very” firm response, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Thursday.
Mr. Jaishankar made the remarks at a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
The External Affairs Minister said the “barbaric” Pahalgam terror attack compelled India to carry out strikes on “cross-border” terror infrastructure on Wednesday.
“This attack compelled us to respond on May 7 by striking at the cross-border terrorist infrastructure. Our response was targeted and measured,” he said.
“It is not our intention to escalate the situation. However, if there are military attacks on us, there should be no doubt that it will be met with a very very firm response,” he said.
Mr. Jaishankar said as a neighbour and close partner, it is important that Iran has a good understanding of the situation.
The Iranian Foreign Minister landed in New Delhi around midnight last night on a scheduled visit amid the escalating tensions between India and Pakistan.