External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri arrived at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s residence on Friday evening as a high-level security meeting was convened to assess the worsening situation along India’s western border. National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval was also present.
Earlier in the evening, alongside top defence officials, including Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Anil Chauhan, Army Chief Gen. Upendra Dwivedi, Air Chief Marshal AP Singh and Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met the Prime Minister.
Earlier in the day, the Defence Minister conducted a separate review of the current security situation, a day after Pakistan launched coordinated drone and missile attacks targeting Indian cities and military infrastructure. Defence Secretary RK Singh also attended the briefing.
Pakistan’s Large-Scale Drone Offensive Thwarted
Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, addressing a joint press briefing, confirmed that on the night of May 7 and 8, the Pakistani army launched a series of airspace violations and drone intrusions along the western border. Indian officials said the coordinated attacks were intercepted using air defence systems, including the S-400 platform.
“On the night of May 7 and 8, the Pakistani army violated Indian airspace several times over the entire western border to target military infrastructure,” Col. Qureshi said. “Around 300 to 400 drones were used to attempt infiltration at 36 locations.”
Several of the drones, she added, were shot down using both kinetic and non-kinetic means. Forensic investigations suggest the drones were Turkish-made Asisguard Songar models, likely used for reconnaissance and to test Indian air defence readiness.
Pakistan’s Actions ‘Provocative and Escalatory’
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri sharply criticised Pakistan’s actions, calling them “provocative and escalatory” and accusing Islamabad of targeting not only military sites but also civilian infrastructure.
“These provocative and escalatory actions taken by Pakistan last night were targeted at Indian cities and civilian infrastructure in addition to military establishments,” Misri said. “Indian armed forces responded proportionately, adequately and responsibly.”
He also condemned Pakistan’s denial of the attacks, calling it “blatantly farcical” and indicative of “new depths” of duplicity.
Further briefings and official statements are expected as the situation continues to unfold.