Pakistan’s armed forces reaffirmed their pledge to defend the country and contribute to regional peace on the sixth anniversary of the 2019 ‘Operation Swift Retort’ on Thursday.

On February 27, 2019, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) had shot down two Indian planes that had violated Pakistani airspace. One of the Indian pilots was captured by Pakistan, but was later handed over as a gesture of peace.

Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) General Sahir Shamshad Mirza and the services chiefs “reiterated their steadfast commitment to ensuring Pakistan’s national security and stability while continuing efforts to foster regional peace”, said a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) today.

The CJCSC and services chiefs reaffirmed that Pakistan’s armed forces “remain ever-vigilant and fully prepared to counter any threat to the nation, upholding the trust and confidence reposed in them by the people of Pakistan”.

“With unwavering resolve, Pakistan’s armed forces stand ready to defend the motherland while actively contributing to regional and global peace initiatives, in line with Pakistan’s enduring pursuit of stability and harmony.”

The ISPR statement termed the 2019 operation a “resolute and measured response to India’s unwarranted aggression, reaffirming Pakistan’s unyielding commitment to safeguarding its sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

“The operation not only demonstrated the operational excellence and preparedness of Pakistan’s armed forces but also underscored their ability to effectively deter aggression and immediately re-establishing deterrence while maintaining complete operational dominance throughout the engagement.”

CJCSC Gen Mirza and the services chiefs paid tribute to Pakistan’s armed forces’ unwavering courage, professionalism, and sacrifices on the “solemn occasion”, the military’s media affairs wing said.

‘Entire nation’ proud of armed forces, says PM Shehbaz

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also paid tribute to the “courage, professionalism and spirit of sacrifice of the Pakistani armed forces” on the occasion, state-owned Radio Pakistan reported.

In his message, the premier commended the Pakistan Air Force (PAF), stating that they had “sent a clear message” to the aggressor that the country was fully capable of protecting its borders.

“Our forces have proved that our soldiers are always ready for the security of Pakistan by responding to India’s aggression in the region,” PM Shehbaz said.

“The entire nation, including me, is proud of its brave forces,” he added, highlighting that the country’s forces have made great sacrifices for national security.

How it unfolded

The epicentre of the Pakistan-India escalation was an attack in occupied Kashmir’s Pulwama on Feb 14, 2019, in which more than 40 Indian paramilitary soldiers were killed.

The attack, surpassing one in 2016 when 19 soldiers died, saw explosives packed inside a van rip through buses in a convoy of 78 vehicles carrying some 2,500 members of the paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force.

Two blue buses carrying around 35 people each bore the brunt of the explosion around 20 kilometres from the main city of Srinagar on the main highway towards occupied Jammu.

The next day, India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, said his country would give a “strong response” to the Pulwama attack.

The “blood of the people is boiling” and forces behind the act of terrorism will be definitely be punished, he was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.

Modi didn’t name Pakistan but went on to say: “If our neighbour, which is totally isolated in the world and thinks it can destabilise India through its tactics and conspiracies, then it is making a huge mistake.”

The situation heated up when Indian military planes violated the Line of Control, intruding from the Muzaffarabad sector. “Pakistan Air Force immediately scrambled”, and Indian aircraft went back, the ISPR had said in a statement.

The intrusion in Pakistani airspace by Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft had happened for a second consecutive day, as one of its planes had to release payloads in the Balakot area while being chased away in the early hours of the day. The Pakistan military spokesman had then promised “surprise” for India in response to the IAF aggression.

A day later, the IAF jets entered Pakistani airspace after the PAF strikes on the other side of the LoC from Pakistani airspace for what the Foreign Office and Army had described as a demonstration of Pakistan’s “right, will and capability for self-defence”.

The PAF strikes across the LoC were first announced by then-FO spokesman Dr Mohammad Faisal via a post on X, which at that time was known as Twitter.

“PAF undertook strikes across LoC from Pakistani airspace. The sole purpose of this action was to demonstrate our right, will and capability for self-defence. We do not wish to escalate but are fully prepared if forced into that paradigm,” he had tweeted.