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Asif Ali Zardari has accused India of preparing for another military confrontation similar to the May 2025 standoff that followed Operation Sindoor, and urged New Delhi to return to negotiations.
Addressing a joint sitting of Pakistan’s Parliament on Monday amid opposition protests, the Pakistani president said statements by Indian leaders suggested preparations for another conflict. “India’s leaders say they are preparing for another war. As a lifelong advocate of regional peace, I would not recommend it,” he said, adding that Islamabad remained open to dialogue.
“My message to them is to move away from the war theatre to meaningful negotiation tables, because that is the only path for regional security,” Zardari told lawmakers.
India and Pakistan were locked in a four-day military standoff in May 2025 after India launched Operation Sindoor, targeting what it described as terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. It was carried out in response to the April 22, 2025, terror attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 tourists. Pakistan responded with drone strikes, prompting India to impose blackout measures along the Line of Control and the International Border.
Zardari also criticised India’s position on the Indus Waters Treaty, calling the suspension of the agreement an act of “hydro-terrorism”. He accused the government led by Narendra Modi of attempting to weaponise water flows for political purposes.
The Pakistani president reiterated Islamabad’s stance on Kashmir, saying lasting peace in South Asia would remain elusive without a resolution of the dispute. He added that Pakistan would continue to extend diplomatic and moral support to the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
Zardari also referred to tensions along Pakistan’s western frontier and called on Afghanistan to engage in dialogue amid friction with the Taliban authorities. He warned that militant groups operating from Afghan territory posed a broader regional threat, citing findings referenced in a United Nations report.
“Stop being used by another country as a battlefield for their ambitions,” he said, without naming India directly.
India has repeatedly denied Pakistan’s allegations of involvement in Afghanistan. During the 2025 clashes, the Ministry of External Affairs rejected Islamabad’s claims.
MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at the time that Pakistan hosts terrorist organisations and has a history of blaming neighbours for its internal problems, while also criticising Islamabad’s position on Afghanistan.
Following renewed strikes last month, India also condemned Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan territory during Ramadan, saying the attacks had caused civilian casualties and represented another attempt to deflect from domestic challenges.
Team BharatShakti
Dr Ravi Shankar has over two decades of experience in communications, print journalism, electronic media, documentary film making and new media.
He makes regular appearances on national television news channels as a commentator and analyst on current and political affairs. Apart from being an acknowledged Journalist, he has been a passionate newsroom manager bringing a wide range of journalistic experience from past associations with India’s leading media conglomerates (Times of India group and India Today group) and had led global news-gathering operations at world’s biggest multimedia news agency- ANI-Reuters. He has covered Parliament extensively over the past several years. Widely traveled, he has covered several summits as part of media delegation accompanying the Indian President, Vice President, Prime Minister, External Affairs Minister and Finance Minister across Asia, Africa and Europe.
