NEW DELHI (AP) 鈥� India has only 鈥減aused" its military action and will 鈥渞etaliate on its own terms鈥� if there is any future terror attack on the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Monday in his first public comments since a U.S.-brokered ceasefire over the weekend.
Modi spoke after Indian and Pakistani authorities said there was no firing reported overnight along the heavily militarized region between their countries 鈥� the first time in recent days the nations were not shooting at each other.
The escalating hostilities between the after a had threatened regional peace. India accused Pakistan of backing the militants who carried out the massacre, a charge Islamabad denied.
鈥淲e will be monitoring every step of Pakistan," Modi said in an address to the nation. He added, in response to international calls for dialogue, that if India talks to Pakistan, it will be only about terrorism and Pakistan-controlled Kashmir. Both the nations administer parts of Kashmir but claim it in its entirety.
鈥淭error and talks can鈥檛 go together. Nor can terror and trade,鈥� Modi said.
He did not acknowledge . India and Pakistan to stop all military actions on land, in the air and at the sea on Saturday.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, for his part, said his country agreed to the ceasefire 鈥渋n the spirit of peace鈥� but will never tolerate violations of its sovereignty and territorial integrity. He spoke during a meeting with the Turkish ambassador, according to a government statement.
Senior military officials from India and Pakistan spoke via a hotline on Monday to assess if the ceasefire was holding and how to ensure implementation.
The Indian army in a statement said the officials discussed the commitment of not 鈥渇iring a single shot" or initiating aggressive action. The two sides agreed to consider taking immediate measures to reduce the number of troops in border and forward areas, it said.
鈥淭he night remained largely peaceful across Jammu and Kashmir, and other areas along the international border,鈥� the Indian army said, adding that no incidents had been reported.
Local government officials in Pakistan-administered Kashmir reported no incidents of cross-border firing along the Line of Control 鈥� the de facto border that divides the disputed Kashmir region between India and Pakistan 鈥� and said civilians displaced by recent skirmishes were returning to their homes.
Pakistan鈥檚 military spokesperson, Lt. Gen. Ahmad Sharif, said late Sunday that Pakistan remains committed to upholding the ceasefire and will not be the first to violate it.
Soon after the ceasefire announcement, Pakistan reopened all airports and restored flight operations. India on Monday reopened the 32 airports that were shut temporarily across its northern and western regions.
The countries' militaries had been engaged in since Wednesday, when India struck targets inside Pakistan it said were affiliated with militants responsible for the massacre of 26 tourists last month in Indian-controlled Kashmir. The tourists, mostly Indian Hindu men, were killed in front of their families.
The incident first led to tit-for-tat diplomatic measures. The countries expelled each other鈥檚 diplomats, shut their airspace and land borders and suspended a crucial water treaty.
After Wednesday's strikes in Pakistan, both sides exchanged heavy fire in Kashmir followed by missile and drone strikes into each other鈥檚 territories, mainly targeting military installations and airbases. Dozens of civilians were killed on both sides, the two countries said.
The Indian military on Sunday for the first time claimed its strikes into Pakistan-controlled Kashmir and Pakistan last week , including prominent leaders.
Lt. Gen. Rajiv Ghai, the director general of India鈥檚 military operations, said India鈥檚 armed forces struck nine militant infrastructure and training facilities, including sites of the Lashkar-e-Taiba group that India blames for carrying out major militant strikes in India.
Ghai also said at least 35 to 40 Pakistani soldiers were killed in clashes along the Line of Control. Five Indian soldiers were also killed, he said.
Pakistan鈥檚 Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Thursday said his country鈥檚 armed forces had killed 40 to 50 Indian soldiers along the Line of Control. Pakistani military also claimed to have shot down five Indian fighter jets and inflected heavy losses on Indian military installations by targeting 26 locations in India.
The Associated Press couldn鈥檛 independently verify the claims made by India and Pakistan.
Air Chief Marshal AK Bharti, the director general India鈥檚 air operations, told a news conference on Monday that despite 鈥渕inor damage (s) incurred, all our military bases and air defense systems continue to remain fully operational, and ready to undertake any further missions, should the need so arise.鈥�
Bharti reiterated that New Delhi鈥檚 fight was 鈥渨ith terrorists, and not with Pakistan military or its civilians.鈥�
___
Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed to this report.
Rajesh Roy, The Associated Press
