In an indication of the fraught ties between the two South Asia neighbours, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has said the Pakistani military could have responded to India after its missile landed in his country's Punjab province but it observed restraint.  This is the first time when Khan, who has been facing a no-confidence motion against his government, spoke about the missile incident after India accidentally fired an unarmed supersonic missile into Pakistani territory on 9 March. 

“We could have responded after an Indian missile fell in Mian Channu (in Pakistani territory) but we observed restraint," Khan said in a speech on Sunday while he was addressing a public rally in Punjab's Hafizabad.

Earlier on  Friday, India Defence Ministry said in a statement, “On 9 March 2022, in the course of routine maintenance, a technical malfunction led to the accidental firing of a missile. It is learned that the missile landed in an area of Pakistan.”

Regretting the incident, India said it had taken a serious view of the matter and a high-level court of inquiry has been ordered into the incident.

Reacting to the explanation offered by India, Pakistan's Foreign Office on Saturday said they were not satisfied with what they called India's "simplistic explanation" on the "accidental firing" of a missile, and demanded a joint probe to accurately establish the facts surrounding the incident.

The missile that was in Pakistan’s airspace for almost three and a half minutes endangered several domestic and international flights and could have resulted in a serious aviation accident as well as civilian casualties,  experts said. 

"Pakistan dem­ands a joint probe to accurately establish the facts surrounding the incident," Pakistan’s Foreign Office said in a statement. 

Furthermore, Islamabad also raised a number of questions, including if the missile was handled by professional armed personnel or rogue element.”

The incident that put India in a tight spot raises the question about the security and safety protocols of missiles and some experts suggest questions will also be raised in Washington, and other capitals as well, about the unintended consequences such accidents in a nuclearized environment. 

(SAM)