Key facts
- Pakistan has formally protested to Japan over a reference to cross-border terrorism in a joint India-Japan statement.
- Pakistan's Foreign Ministry described the reference as "one-sided" and alleged Indian pressure on Tokyo.
- India stated the joint statement was self-explanatory and addressed issues on which both countries have a "certain viewpoint".
- The joint statement condemned terrorist attacks and called for perpetrators of cross-border terrorism to be brought to justice.
- Pakistan claims Japan assured Islamabad that there has been no shift in Tokyo's policy towards Pakistan.
Pakistan has formally protested to Japan over the inclusion of a reference to cross-border terrorism in a recent India-Japan joint statement, accusing New Delhi of influencing Tokyo to adopt what Islamabad described as a "one-sided" position on the issue.
The diplomatic protest, disclosed by Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry, comes after India and Japan reaffirmed their commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms and stressed the need to hold perpetrators, organisers and financiers of cross-border terrorism accountable in their joint statement issued during Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s visit to India.
According to Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrab, Pakistan conveyed its concerns to Japan through diplomatic channels and lodged a formal démarche over the wording used in the joint statement. "Whenever there is an engagement with India, India forces the inclusion of such references in its joint statements, not just with Japan but also with other countries," Andrab said. He alleged that the reference ignored Pakistan’s role in counter-terrorism efforts and accused India of shaping the narrative in bilateral statements.
India, however, responded to Pakistan’s protest by asserting that the joint statement was self-explanatory and had addressed issues on which both countries have a “certain viewpoint.” External affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated that Pakistan has sponsored cross-border terrorism for decades and used it as an instrument of state policy.
The joint statement also condemned the terrorist attack in Pahalgam in April 2025, which a UN Security Council Monitoring Team Report had linked to The Resistance Front (TRF), a front for Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba. It also condemned a terror incident in Delhi in November 2025 and called for perpetrators, organisers and financiers of such acts to be brought to justice.
Despite its objections, Pakistan maintained that the diplomatic exchange had not altered bilateral ties with Japan. Andrab stated that Japanese officials assured Islamabad that there had been “no shift” in Tokyo’s policy towards Pakistan following the démarche, and that the two countries would continue to engage through established diplomatic mechanisms.