'Action Was Entirely Justifiable': Former US NSA John Bolton Backs India's Right After Pahalgam Attack

"India was certainly entitled to act in self-defence against locations where the terrorist attack was planned and carried out from. It is a significant issue when a country cannot control that kind of terrorist activity going on in its territory or, indeed, maybe contributing to it. India's action was entirely justifiable, but it does raise questions about whether there is any possibility of persuading the Pakistani government that this is ultimately not in their interest and can lead to much worse consequences for them if they don't get it under control," Bolton stated.

He further stated that the response following the Pahalgam attack was a "cut above" what had happened in 2019, referring to the Pulwama attack.

"This is a long-standing issue, but the escalation, the military response, and the back and forth between India and Pakistan before the ceasefire was agreed to were a cut above what happened in 2019, when there was a similar attack in Kashmir," the former NSA stated.

India's Operation Sindoor, launched on May 7, targeted terror infrastructure. After the attack, Pakistan retaliated with cross-border shelling as well as attempted drone attacks along the border regions, following which India launched a coordinated attack and damaged radar infrastructure, communication centres and airfields across 11 airbases in Pakistan.

Following this, on May 10, an understanding of the cessation of hostilities between India and Pakistan took place.