Pakistan Seeks De-Escalation, Minister Softens Tone 

Pakistan is seeking to de-escalate the current heightened tensions with India and is expressing a desire for a meeting between the two sides. Pakistan’s foreign minister Ishaq Dar on Saturday said his country would “consider stopping here" if India stopped its military offensive. He expressed hopes that talks would take place with India following a global diplomatic push to ease tensions between the two nations.

The statement came as top government sources told CNN-News18 that Pakistan wants to de-escalate due to the bad situation in the country and has established communication with New Delhi to meet the Indian side.

This is not the first time a Pakistan minister has back-tracked after being cut to size by India. Pakistan’s defence minister Khawaja Asif, who had earlier said “either we [Pakistan] survive or no one does", took a U-turn to say they were ready to refrain from further action if India halted its operations on the border.

The situation within Pakistan is described as “bad," prompting a push from Islamabad to engage with New Delhi, the sources said. Communication channels have been established with New Delhi to arrange a meeting between representatives of both nations, the sources further said.

Although there has been no official confirmation from either the Indian or Pakistani governments sources indicated a potential shift in Pakistan’s stance, possibly acknowledging the severity of the ongoing crisis and seeking a diplomatic pathway to de-escalation.

Earlier, top intelligence sources informed that India has inflicted substantial damage on Pakistan’s military infrastructure along the International Border and the Line of Control. Critical targets were neutralized by Indian forces while the damage incurred on the Indian side is described as minimal.