ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan’s defense minister said Monday that a military incursion by neighboring India appeared imminent, following a deadly militant attack last week on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir, as tensions escalate between the two nuclear-armed rivals.
The attack, which killed 26 people, has sparked outrage in Hindu-majority India and renewed calls for action against Muslim-majority Pakistan. New Delhi has accused Islamabad of backing militancy in Kashmir, a disputed region over which the two nations have fought multiple wars.
“We have reinforced our forces because it is something which is imminent now,” Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said in an interview with Reuters at his office in Islamabad. “In that situation, some strategic decisions have to be taken — and those decisions have been taken.”
Mr. Asif said Pakistan’s military had briefed the government on the possibility of an Indian attack, though he did not elaborate on the intelligence or assessments prompting the warning.
India’s foreign and defense ministries did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Following the attack, Indian officials said two suspected militants were Pakistani nationals. Islamabad has denied any involvement and called for a neutral investigation into the killings. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has vowed to pursue and punish those responsible.
Pakistan remains on high alert but would only consider using nuclear weapons if there were a “direct threat to our existence,” Mr. Asif said. A veteran politician and a senior figure in the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party, Mr. Asif has traditionally supported diplomatic engagement with India.
Tensions between India and Pakistan, particularly over Kashmir, have repeatedly brought the two countries to the brink of conflict. Both possess nuclear arsenals, and international observers have expressed concern about the risks of escalation.
