India has 'legitimate right' to act in self-defence against Pakistan: Former US NSA

John Bolton, the US National Security Advisor (NSA) to the US President Donald Trump from 2018-2019 and a former US Ambassador to the United Nations, has said that even though nobody wants to see a wider conflict in South Asia, India has every right to act in self-defence against Pakistan after the heinous April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 innocent civilians were gunned down by four terrorists, two of them from Pakistan, after identifying their religion.

In an exclusive interview with IANS, Bolton, who served as the US NSA during the Pulwama attack in February 2019 - also conducted by Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammad resulting in the death of 40 CRPF personnel - said that it is highly unfortunate that people of Jammu and Kashmir are being prevented from living in a stable environment and the tourists deterred from coming to the region because of the continuous terrorist activity from across the border.

"I think it's very important to continue the work to find exactly what the circumstances of this were. When I was the National Security Advisor, we faced a comparable situation in 2019, with a terrorist attack that emanated from Pakistani soil. And we consulted closely with senior government officials," Bolton told IANS.

"And, our view at the time was that if the government felt that they were confident that this had emanated from Pakistani soil and that the government of Pakistan had failed to prevent the attack from taking place or had actually assisted it, then India had every right to act in self-defence.

"I think the same principle applies here. I do think it's in India's interest to be able to demonstrate, as convincingly as possible, what the circumstances were to justify a military response if that's what they decide to do. Nobody wants to see a wider conflict in South Asia, but the threat from terrorist attacks is something that nobody has to live with. And that's why, response and self-defence is fully permissible," he added.

Bolton stated that the United States has been "dealing with the question of Pakistan" for quite some time, "in very difficult circumstances" and "over a long period of time", especially in the immediate aftermath of 9/11.

"We have said in both Republican and Democratic administrations that state sponsorship of terrorism, is not something we can accept. And, the terrorist activities that come from Pakistani territory, ultimately are going to find themselves attributed to the government if they don't take action against them. It's a difficult process but I am concerned about the potential threat from terrorist groups inside Pakistan or across the border in Afghanistan," he said.

Several countries, including the United States, have acknowledged Pakistan's role in supporting, training and funding terrorist organisations, including being home to terrorist groups like Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad that have repeatedly targetted India.

"Well, I think this is the kind of thing we have talked to the Pakistanis about for many, many years. Obviously, the government of India has done the same. And its lack of success is frustrating obviously. I think that is why India is justified if it can demonstrate the background for this attack in its own self-defence to use military force... I'm not suggesting that the US should get involved in it. I'm not sure either side would want that to happen in any event. But ultimately, these political questions ought to be addressed by political means and not through terrorism," said Bolton.

With Pakistan's Railway Minister Hanif Abbasi recently saying that Pakistan's nukes are not just for show but "for India", the former US NSA also laid bare the jingoism and hollowness of provocative statements coming out of Islamabad over the last few days.

"I don't think that's helpful at all. I don't think Pakistan really wants a full-scale military confrontation with India. They know it, they know what the relative size of their conventional military is and how dangerous it would be to try and increase, to try and escalate the conflict that could threaten something even more than that. Obviously, the idea that India and Pakistan would resort to nuclear weapons, perhaps Pakistan first, because of the imbalance in the forces, is something that nobody should be contemplating. So, provocative statements by anybody don't help to resolve the crisis. Whatever India decides to do in self-defence, I think it's got a legitimate right to do it. But I hope that both sides here look to address the real problem, which is these terrorist attacks, that India shouldn't be subjected to and Pakistan shouldn't allow to happen," reckoned Bolton.