Zeenews Bureau
New Delhi: External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Wednesday accused Pakistan of violating the 2003 ceasefire and blamed it for the gruesome killing of two Indian soldiers along the Line of Control.
Speaking here, the minister said that Pakistan is responsible for the attack and it has to answer on the matter.
“We expect them to respond to our concerns,” Khurshid said. He said that a serious message has been conveyed to Pakistan and will wait for direct response from Pakistani authorities, as per reports.
Earlier too, while addressing the press along with visiting Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh, Khurshid said that New Delhi was awaiting a response from Pakistan’s civilian government on the gruesome attack.
He said that the Pakistani envoy was summoned today and spoken to in “very strong terms”.
“We have conveyed the protest,” he added.
While the Pakistani Army has dismissed the allegations, the country’s civilian government has yet to respond to the allegations.
Khurshid said non-violation of ceasefire was an integral part of the conventional confidence building measures (CBMs), and added “such actions would adversely impact whatever we have achieved so far in bilateral ties”.
“The manner in which bodies (of Indian soldiers) were treated is a matter of deep concern... this is completely unacceptable,” the minister said.
While stating that the Indian government was awaiting “an appropriate response” from the Pakistan government, Khurshid said “we must ensure the situation is not allowed to escalate further”.
First Published: Wednesday, January 09, 2013, 14:08