India, Pak should launch probe into accidental missile firing: China

TIL Desk/World/Beijing/ China on Monday said India and Pakistan should hold a dialogue as soon as possible and launch a “thorough investigation” into the recent “accidental firing” of a missile from India which landed in Pakistan’s Punjab province. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian, during a media briefing in Beijing, said that Pakistan and India both of them are important countries in South Asia and they share the responsibility to uphold regional security and stability.

Asked by a Pakistani journalist about China’s response on the “accidental firing” of the Indian missile, he said: “We have noted the relevant information”.“We called on relevant countries to have dialogue and communication as soon as possible and launch a thorough investigation into this incident, strengthen information sharing and establish a notification mechanism in time to ensure the recurrence of such incidents and prevent miscalculation,” Zhao added.

On Friday, the Indian government said it accidentally fired a missile two days back that landed in Pakistan and that the “deeply regrettable” incident was caused by a technical malfunction in the course of its routine maintenance. India’s defence ministry said that the government has taken a serious view of the incident and ordered a ‘Court of Enquiry’ into it, a day after Pakistan said a high-speed projectile launched from India entered its airspace and fell near Mian Channu in Khanewal district of the Punjab province.