India's restraint should not be mistaken as weakness: Anand Sharma

Shimla, Dec 30 (ANI): Union Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma has reiterated India's demand that Pakistan take action rather than do talking only and said that India's restraint should not be misinterpreted as its weakness.

Sharma while addressing a news conference here last evening once again blamed Pakistan for creating war hysteria and said that India has continuously acted in a mature and restraint manner.

"To refer to the war hysteria, it is not a creation of India. India has acted throughout with maturity and remarkable restraint. This restraint must never be misinterpreted as weakness. It is the strong and mature who have this restraint," Sharma said.

India, the United States and Britain have blamed last month's Mumbai terror attacks on Pakistan based group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

Pakistan has condemned the attacks and denied any state role, blaming non-state actors".

It has offered to cooperate with India but denies Indian claims that it has been handed firm evidence of links to militants in Pakistan.

Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Rajnath Singh called for joint economic sanction by the United States and India against Pakistan in order to combat terrorism.

Reacting on Singh's statement, Sharma said that BJP president has less knowledge about the diplomatic and foreign affairs and pressure cannot be mounted on other countries.

"Every country will take its own decision about the policy they want to adopt. Sovereign nations decide their own polices. We can't be prescriptive while interacting or engaging other countries to mount diplomatic pressure. Each country has to take its decisions. We as a sovereign country will take our decisions," said Sharma.

In a sign of mounting tension, Pakistan has cancelled army leave and shifted some troops from its western border with Afghanistan to the eastern border with India.

The United States has urged both sides not to further raise tension. China and Iran have also tried to calm things down. (ANI)