India PM tells soldiers to prepare for 'decisive battle'
Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee told soldiers on the disputed Kashmir border today to prepare for a ‘‘decisive battle’’ against Islamic insurgents he said are backed by Pakistan.
Vajpayee was addressing hundreds of Indian soldiers close to the ceasefire line that divides the two nuclear-armed neighbours.
Dozens of civilians and soldiers have been killed in the last five days along the frontier in heavy cross-border shelling that has sparked fears of a new war between the rivals.
Vajpayee asked the soldiers ‘‘to be ready for sacrifice. Your goal should be victory. It is time to fight a decisive battle. We will write a new chapter of victory.’’
