By The South Asia Times 

ISLAMABAD -  Pakistan has strongly condemned remarks by India's defence minister regarding the disputed region of Jammu and Kashmir, calling them "highly provocative and irresponsible" and accusing New Delhi of undermining regional peace and distorting internationally recognised legal realities.

In a statement issued on Monday, Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the Indian minister's comments misrepresented the status of the Kashmir dispute, which Islamabad said remains on the agenda of the UN Security Council. The ministry alleged that the remarks reflected a policy of threatening regional and international peace and security.

Pakistan also accused India of attempting to divert attention from its administration of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), as well as from what it described as domestic instability and support for terrorism in the region.

The ministry said Pakistan remained determined to defend its sovereignty and warned against what it called any "Indian adventurism." It also urged the international community, particularly the United Nations, to hold India accountable for implementing relevant UN Security Council resolutions concerning Kashmir.

Separately, Pakistan's Defence Minister Khawaja Asif echoed the government's position in a post on X, rejecting the Indian defence minister's remarks and saying they could not change the internationally recognised status of Jammu and Kashmir.

Asif said Kashmir remained an internationally recognised disputed territory whose final status should be determined through relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the will of the Kashmiri people.

He further accused India of sponsoring terrorism and contributing to instability in South Asia, allegations that India has consistently denied. Asif also warned that India's rhetoric risked increasing tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.

The defence minister said Pakistan remained committed to peace and dialogue but would firmly protect its sovereignty, territorial integrity and national security. He also claimed the Indian minister's remarks were intended to divert attention from domestic political challenges facing Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government.

The latest exchange adds to longstanding tensions between India and Pakistan over Kashmir, a Himalayan region claimed in full but administered in part by both countries.