Strikes on Pakistan, AJK: UN chief says very concerned about Indian actions

UNITED NATIONS: United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was very concerned about Indian attacks in Pakistan and AJK, his spokesperson said on Tuesday while calling for maximum military restraint from both nuclear-armed Asian neighbours.

Guterres said earlier this week even before India’s military actions that tensions between India and Pakistan were “at their highest in years” after an April 22 Islamist militant attack in iiojk in which 26 people were killed and which the UN chief condemned as an “awful terror attack.”

“The Secretary-General is very concerned about the Indian military operations across the Line of Control and international border. He calls for maximum military restraint from both countries,” the UN chief’s spokesperson said on Tuesday.

“The world cannot afford a military confrontation between India and Pakistan.”

“Tensions between India and Pakistan are at their highest in years. I strongly condemn the awful terror attack in Pahalgam on 22 April. It is essential - especially at this critical hour - that India and Pakistan avoid a military confrontation that could easily spin out of control,” Guterres said on Monday.

Late last month, Guterres spoke separately with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif and India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and offered to support de-escalation efforts, his spokesperson said.