Forces on alert, will retaliate if Pakistan uses military or terror ops: Narendra Modi warns

New Delhi: Prime minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday warned Pakistan against any future attacks against India, saying Indian forces are on high alert and that any engagement from Pakistan—whether through terror attacks or military operations—will face aggressive retaliation on India's terms.

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Speaking to troops at Adampur base in Punjab, which was targeted during the four day-long conflict last week, Modi also said India had called Pakistan's nuclear weapons bluff and emerged victorious through Operation Sindoor.

Congratulating the forces at Adampur, Modi said Indian Air defence systems, which have capabilities such as the indigenous Akash surface-to-air missiles and the Russian S-400 long-range air defense missile system, had left a positive impression on the world.

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Indian forces had used not just weapons, but also technology and drones in the conflict, he said.

"You have taken India's pride to new heights," said Modi. "Our Air Force targeted terrorist hubs deep inside Pakistan, and destroyed them with pinpoint accuracy in a matter of 20-25 minutes," he said, adding that this professional attack was possible with the aid of technology.

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The three arms of the military—Army, Navy and Air Force—had all worked in tandem to execute Operation Sindoor and defend Indian sovereignty in the conflict that ensued, he said. "The Navy created a dominant position in the sea, the Army strongly defended our borders, and the Air Force both attacked and defended our motherland," said Modi.

This came after the prime minister on Monday night announced a new policy against terrorism, where India will retaliate firmly against any terror act, not engage with nuclear weapons bluffs, and not differentiate between terrorists and governments backing terrorism.

India's target during Operation Sindoor was the terrorist bases and camps inside Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, but Pakistan, by not closing its airspace for commercial flights, used civilian aircraft as a shield, said Modi.

Indian forces, however, showed remarkable restraint during this period, Modi said. "With great alertness and presence of mind, Indian forces retaliated strongly without putting civilian lives in danger," said Modi.

India's military operation against nine terror bases in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in the early hours of 7 May, codenamed Operation Sindoor, was in retaliation against the terror attack in Pahalgam on 22 April which left 26 people dead. 

The Indian operation killed over a hundred terrorists, said Modi.

After the operation, the Indian director general of military operations reached out to his Pakistani counterpart to apprise them of the situation. But Pakistan said it would respond sternly, according to military officials press briefings last week.

Pakistani armed forces used heavy artillery, loiter munitions, as well as drones to attack parts of Jammu, Punjab and Rajasthan, surveil Indian air defence systems and harass Indian civilians.

India deemed this as an escalatory move and hit Pakistani military infrastructure such as communication centres and air defence radars in key air bases, Army officials said.

Pakistan continued to target civilian infrastructure in India, while India had only focused on military targets in Pakistan. Several airbases and munition depots such as Rahimyarkhan, Chaklala, Jacobabad, Sargodha, and Rawalpindi, among others in Pakistan were targeted.

On Saturday evening, DGMO Pakistan reached out to India and the two countries called a ceasefire agreement. But Pakistan violated this ceasefire within hours by conduction drone rains in Indian airspace.

Over the last 24 hours, some media reports have reported drone sightings in areas of Jammu and parts of Punjab. But no major escalation has been reported.

Meanwhile, foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told reporters on Tuesday that there were no discussions on trade in the communication between India and the US which happened in the backdrop of the conflict between India and Pakistan over the last few days.

“There were talks between Indian and US leaders on the evolving military situation. The issue of trade did not come up during any of these discussion,” said Jaiswal.

He reiterated that all issues regarding Jammu and Kashmir are bilateral in nature between India and Pakistan—as has been a long-term policy—and there is no change in this policy.

“We have a long-standing position that any issues pertaining to the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir have to be addressed by India and Pakistan bilaterally. That stated policy has not changed. The outstanding matter is the vacation of illegally occupied Indian territory by Pakistan,” he said during the weekly MEA briefing on Tuesday, in response to US President Donald Trump stating that the US helped broker a solution to the Kashmir issue.

He said India will propose to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) 1267 Sanctions Committee that it should include The Resistance Front (TRF), a front for the Lashkar-e-Taiba, as a terrorist outfit. The UNSC 1267 Sanctions Committee has been receiving information about the TRF from India, said Jaiswal.

“Over the last two years—2023 and 2024—we have been sharing information with the United Nations, with the monitoring team of the sanctions committee as to why the terrorist TRF, which is a front for the Lashkar-e-Taiba, be listed as a terrorist entity. In a few days time, we will also be sharing more details in this regard, and hopefully the Security Council 1267 monitoring team will take strong note of what we present and take due action,” he said. 

Jaiswal also clarified that India's military action was conventional, and all reports related to any nuclear activity have been denied by the Pakistan foreign minister on record.

He said the force of Indian military action on 10 May had compelled Pakistan to seek  a ceasefire, and the external affairs ministry received a request from Pakistan for DGMO-level communication at 1237 hours on 10 May. It was conveyed to other countries, said Jaiswal, that India was attacking terrorist targets, and that if the Pakistani armed forced fired, India would fire back.