New Delhi: In his speech at the 81st UN General Assembly (UNGA) Friday, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif once again brought up the May 2025 four-day military confrontation that followed Operation Sindoor, which was India’s response to the Pahalgam terror attack.
An Indian diplomat smiled and shook his head in disagreement as the Pakistani PM said: “A year ago, Pakistan faced external aggression from India under a false pretext. Pakistan exercised its inherent right of self-defence under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter.”
He added: “Our brave and valiant armed forces, under the courageous leadership of Field Marshal Asim Munir responded with precision and professionalism. They silenced the enemy, repulsed its attack, and taught it a lesson it shall never ever forget.”
The Pakistan PM again referred to US President Donald Trump’s “timely intervention”. New Delhi has long maintained that no third party brought about the ceasefire between India & Pakistan in May 2025.
“And of course thanks to President Donald Trump’s resolute and visionary leadership, hundreds and millions of lives in South Asia were saved. His timely intervention came at a decisive juncture, when two nuclear-armed neighbours stood at the brink of an all-out war. And who knows the extent of devastation that could have taken place had President Trump not stepped in at this critical moment with clarity of thought,” said Sharif.
In his speech, the Pakistani PM also referred to Kashmir as “Pakistan’s jugular vein”.
“From this podium, I assure my Kashmiri brothers and sisters, with the fullest authority at my command, that we shall continue to extend our full diplomatic, political, and moral support to them until they are granted their right to self-determination. Kashmir has and always will be Pakistan’s jugular vein,” he said.
He also took aim at what he called “RSS-driven ideology” fanning “religious hatred just across our border”.
“The alarming rise in Islamophobia is deeply worrying, as Muslims face hate speech, discrimination, attacks on mosques, and desecration of the Holy Quran. Just across our border, RSS-driven ideology is fanning religious hatred, leading to lynching, communal violence, attacks on places of worship, and restrictions upon religious freedom.”
Sharif further said that any bid to divert Indus waters will be treated as an “act of war”, adding that “India must make no mistake about it”.
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