April 9 (Punjab Khabarnama) : The US on Monday responded to the reports alleging that India carried out targeting killings beyond state borders, in neighbouring country Pakistan. The United States encouraged the two countries to find a resolution to this issue and said that it would not get in the middle.
US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller, responding to a question regarding the same at a press briefing, said the United States “will not get in the middle” of this situation, urging both sides to avoid escalations of the matter.
“So we have been following the media reports about this issue. We don’t have any comment on the underlying allegations. But of course, while we’re not going to get in the middle of this situation, we encourage both sides to avoid escalation and find a resolution through dialogue,” Miller said.
Last week, India issued a statement rejecting the charges put forward by a report by UK daily The Guardian, saying that the claims were “false and malicious anti-India propaganda”. In its report, The Guardian, citing Pakistani sources, claimed that India was carrying out targeted killings in the neighbouring country.
The Guardian report claimed that the Indian intelligence agency R&AW had carried out up to 20 such assassinations since the Pulwama attack of 2019.
What did the Guardian report say?
The report published by The Guardian said Indian intelligence agency R&AW has been carrying out targeted killings and assassinations in Pakistan, citing evidence sourced from the country and intelligence officers from both sides of the border.
The report quoted Pakistani officials as saying that Indian sleeper cells in the UAE were responsible for the killings. An anonymous Indian official also said in the report that Indian intelligence had drawn inspiration from Israel’s Mossad and Russia’s KGB to carry out these targeted killings.
Defence minister Rajnath Singh responded to these allegations, saying, “If terrorists from the neighbouring country try to disturb the peace in Bharat or try to carry out terror activities in Bharat, we will give them a befitting reply. (Koi bhi terrorist hamare parosi desh se yadi hamare Bharat ko disturb karneki koshish karega, yahan par yadi atankbadi harkate karega, toh uska muh tod jabab denge).”
“If they run away to Pakistan, we will enter Pakistan to kill them (Yadi woh bhag kar Pakistan mein jayega, toh Pakistan mein ghus kar marenge),” he told “CNN News 18”.
Singh said India has the strength to take stern action against cross-border terrorism and Pakistan has started realising it.
The defence minister supported Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent comments that “Bharat” would not be a mute spectator.
“Whatever the prime minister has said is absolutely true. And India has that strength and Pakistan has also started realising this,” Singh said.
At the same time, he said India always wants to maintain good relations with its neighbours.
