China has expressed “regret” over India’s military action against Pakistan and voiced “concerns” over the escalating tensions between the South Asian nations, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Wednesday morning.
“India and Pakistan are neighbours who cannot be moved away, and both are also China’s neighbours. China opposes all forms of terrorism,” a ministry spokesperson said.
“We call on both India and Pakistan to prioritise the overall situation of peace and stability, maintain calm and restraint, and avoid taking actions that would further complicate the situation.”
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The statement was issued hours after a sharp escalation in tensions between the nuclear-armed countries following India’s military strikes on alleged terrorist camps inside Pakistan and Pakistan-administered parts of Kashmir.
India’s defence ministry said earlier that it had conducted “precision strikes at terrorist camps” at nine locations, which it claimed were used to plan and direct attacks against India.
At least eight people were killed and 38 others injured in the strikes that India called “Operation Sindoor”, Associated Press reported, citing a Pakistani military spokesperson.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif disputed India’s account and called the strikes a “cowardly attack”, while warning that a decisive response was already under way.
Pakistan also claimed to have shot down five Indian fighter jets, though this has not been confirmed by India.
The heightened tensions stem from a militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir in April that killed 26 people, most of them tourists. India has blamed Pakistan for the attack, which Pakistan denies.
More from South China Morning Post:
- Kashmir tensions: India strikes at Pakistan as Islamabad vows retaliation
- India-Pakistan tensions escalate amid missile tests near Kashmir
- India-Pakistan tensions leave Kashmir family caught in crossfire: ‘alone on the other side’
- Pakistan says it shot down an Indian drone along Kashmir border amid escalating tensions
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