Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa on Tuesday said the Indian army will always get a "befitting response" if it undertakes any misadventure or displays aggression against Pakistan.
The chief of army staff stated this during a visit to forward areas where he met and interacted with troops deployed along the Line of Control (LoC), the military's media wing said in a statement.
During his visit, Gen Bajwa was briefed about the latest situation on the border, Indian ceasefire violations "deliberately targeting innocent civilians" along the LoC and recent targeting of a United Nations vehicle by Indian troops "against all international norms and conventions", according to the Inter-Services Public Relations.
While appreciating the operational preparedness and high morale of troops, the army chief lauded officers and soldiers for continued vigilance and professionalism.
"Indian provocations particularly recent targeting of UNMOGIP (United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan) vehicles are [a] threat to regional peace and stability," Gen Bajwa was quoted as saying.
"Indian Army shall always get [a] befitting response to any misadventure or aggression," he added, emphasising that the Pakistan Army will take measures to protect civilians along the LoC and "defend honour, dignity and territorial integrity of [the] motherland at all costs".
The army chief was received at the LoC by Rawalpindi Corps Commander Lt Gen Azhar Abbas.
His statement comes four days after Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi revealed in the United Arab Emirates that the government had credible information that India was planning a 'surgical strike' against Pakistan to divert attention from its internal affairs and that it was trying to seek "tacit approval" for the move from its international partners.
His announcement on Friday was the second time within the past fortnight that officials had warned about the possibility of an attack by India.
The presser came on the same day that the Indian army “deliberately” fired upon a UN vehicle carrying two military observers on a routine monitoring mission along the restive LoC in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), according to officials.
The vehicle was damaged by the firing but the officers remained unhurt.
Later on Friday, the UN confirmed that a UNMOGIP vehicle was damaged after it was hit by an “unidentified object” near Rawalakot. It said the incident was being investigated.
On Sunday, Prime Minister Imran Khan too informed the international community that India will be given a "befitting response" if it was reckless enough to carry out a "false-flag operation" against Pakistan.
"I want to again warn the world community, as India's internal problems mount, especially economic recession, growing farmers protests and mishandling of Covid-19, the Modi government will divert from the internal mess by conducting a false flag operation against Pakistan," the premier wrote on Twitter.
