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India is capable of defending itself: Manohar Parrikar
Defence minister Manohar Parrikar on Thursday came out strongly against his Pakistani counterpart Khawaja Asif's statement that Pakistan will use nuclear weapons if the need arises.
Defence minister Manohar Parrikar on Thursday came out strongly against his Pakistani counterpart Khawaja Asif's statement that Pakistan will use nuclear weapons if the need arises. "Answer to every question is not necessary. I am Defence Minister of India, not Pakistan. India is capable of securing its borders," Parrikar said.
To a question on cross-border terrorism, the defence minister, who was here to inaugurate an orientation programme for newly-elected Cantonment Board Members, said, "It has come down." The defence minister refused to comment on the possibility of Myanmar-like strikes in the future.
"Such things are secret and cannot be shared," Parrikar said replying to a question on possibility of Myanmar-like strikes. Hitting back at rebels who had killed 18 soldiers in Manipur, special forces of the Army had carried out a surgical strike inside Myanmar last month.
The strike was carried out by commandos on specific intelligence input in coordination with Myanmarese authorities.
Pakistani defence minister Khwaja Asif had said in a television interview on wednesday that if Pakistan needed to use nuclear weapons for "our survival, we will". "We should pray that such an option never arises, but if we need to use them (nuclear weapons) for our survival, we will," he said. Asif also accused India of of waging a proxy war by "fuelling terrorism directly or indirectly in Pakistan."
