Modi's remarks on terrorism are 'baseless rhetoric', Pakistan says

Islamabad: A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused it of indulging in a proxy war against India, Pakistan on Wednesday hit back by dubbing it as "baseless rhetoric" and said both countries should focus on resolving issues instead of engaging in blame game.

"The press reports of Indian accusations, at the highest political level, are most unfortunate, especially as the leadership of Pakistan wishes to establish good neighbourly relations with India," Pakistan foreign office spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam said.

"Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's visit to India in May was in this spirit and generated a fresh momentum in the bilateral relationship," she said in a statement.

Prime Minister Modi, in his address to the Army and Air Force troops on his maiden trip to Leh on Tuesday, had said, "It is unfortunate that our neighbour's attitude ... they have lost the power to fight a war but they use proxy war. There has been a process of killing innocent people through this proxy war."

Commenting on Prime Minister Modi's address, the foreign office termed the remarks as "baseless rhetoric".

"With reference to news reports attributed to Prime Minister Modi repeating the baseless rhetoric against Pakistan regarding terrorism, the Spokesperson (Tasnim Khan) recalled that Pakistan has consistently condemned terrorism, in all its forms and manifestations," the foreign office statement said.

"She pointed out that having lost the lives of 55,000 of its citizens as a result of terrorism; Pakistan is the biggest victim of the menace," it said.

"Our armed forces remain ready to defend the country's borders and thwart any threat of aggression," the spokeswoman said.

"It would be in the larger interest of the regional peace that instead of engaging in a blame game, the two countries should focus on resolving all issues through dialogue and work together to promote friendly and cooperative relations," she said.