Pakistan has been trying to raise the Kashmir issue at various international fora
Days after Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said his country will not use nuclear weapons first, his country's military today stated that it does not follow the "no first use" policy on nuclear weapons, new agency PTI has reported.
"We don't have any "no first use" policy... Our weapons are for deterrence. As far as India is concerned, it us up to them to formulate any policy," Pakistan military spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor said at a media briefing in Islamabad, when he was asked about Defence Minister Rajnath Singh saying last month that India reserves the right to change its policy of 'No First Use', which has been the cornerstone of India's nuclear weapons policy for decades.
"The government firmly stands by its 'No First Use' policy but "what happens in future will depend on the circumstances," Rajnath Singh had said.
PTI quoted Mr Ghafoor as saying the first strike could follow with the second strike. "Nuclear countries have no room for war," he said.
Imran Khan had earlier this week said there will be no first use of nuclear weapons from the Pakistani side. "We both are nuclear-armed countries. If these tensions increase, the world could be in danger," Mr Khan had said addressing members of the Sikh community in Lahore.
The comments come amid tension between India and Pakistan over the scrapping of special status to Jammu and Kashmir and the bifurcation of the state into two Union territories.
Pakistan has been trying to raise the issue at various international fora, but India has maintained that it is an internal matter.
With inputs from PTI