'Pakistan is paying the price of...': Kanwal Sibal slams Islamabad after suicide attack blame on India

Former Foreign Secretary Kanwal Sibal on Sunday criticised Pakistan's attempt to blame India for the recent suicide bombing in Waziristan, saying the country is now facing the consequences of the very extremism it fostered. 

"Pakistan is paying the price of Islamic extremism that it nurtured for geopolitical ends eastwards and westwards,” Sibal wrote in a post on Sunday. "Taliban were their own proteges."

His remarks came a day after the Pakistan Army issued a statement accusing India of involvement in the June 28 attack in North Waziristan, which killed at least 13 security personnel and injured 24. India's Ministry of External Affairs rejected the allegation outright. "We have seen an official statement by the Pakistan Army seeking to blame India for the attack in Waziristan on June 28," the MEA said. "We reject this statement with the contempt it deserves."

Sibal said Islamabad's refusal to acknowledge the consequences of its own policies prevents any meaningful reset in ties with New Delhi. "They should understand in their own interest the folly of blaming India for the backlash of their own policies," he said. "By avoiding responsibility for their own mistakes they can’t make a course connection with India."

He also took aim at Pakistan's military leadership, referring to the current chief without naming him. "With an Islamist Field Marshal running the show in Pakistan this course connection won’t happen," Sibal wrote, adding, “Unfortunately, the Field Marshal has been touted as a great leader by Trump. Doesn’t help."

The remarks come amid heightened tensions between India and Pakistan, with New Delhi increasingly framing Pakistan's internal instability as a product of its long-standing use of extremism as state policy.