Pakistan could lose in war with India, but it will have consequences: Imran Khan
Adam Rizvi, TIO: NY. Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has once again raked up the prospect of a war, including nuclear war, with India over New Delhi’s move to abrogate Article 370, terming it as “illegal annexation” of Kashmir.
Pakistan could lose in a conventional war with India which could then be consequential in view that the two neighboring countries are nuclear-armed, the country’s Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Saturday.
In an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera, Khan said, “I am clear that when two nuclear-armed countries fight a conventional war, there is every possibility of it ending in a nuclear war. If I say Pakistan, God forbid, and in a conventional war, and we are losing, and if a country is stuck between two choices, either you surrender or fight to the death for your freedom.”
“I know Pakistan will fight to the death for freedom (and) when a nuclear-armed country fights to the death, there are consequences,” he added. He said that it was in consideration to these consequences that Pakistan approached the United Nations and other international fora on the Kashmir issue.
“So that’s why we have approached the United Nations, we are approaching every international forum, that they must act right now because this is a potential disaster that would go way beyond the Indian subcontinent,” said Khan.
To a question on his issuing a nuclear threat to India over Kashmir, Imran told the channel: “There is no confusion. What I said is that Pakistan will never start a nuclear war. I am a pacifist, I am anti-war. I believe that wars do not solve problems. War has unintended consequences. Look at the war in Vietnam, Iraq, the wars caused other problems, probably much more serious than what it was originally fought for.
Khan ruled out the possibility of dialogue with India in the aftermath of the country’s decision to abrogate Article 370 that gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir.
Islamabad has downgraded its diplomatic ties and suspended bilateral trade with India as a way to demonstrate. India has maintained that the move on Kashmir is its “internal matter” – a stance that has been supported by many countries – and asked Pakistan to review these decisions so that normal channels for diplomatic communications are preserved.
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