AKIPRESS.COM - Pakistan's defense minister said on Monday a military incursion by neighbouring India was imminent in the aftermath of a deadly militant attack on tourists in Kashmir last week, as tensions rise between the two nuclear-armed nations, Reuters reported.

"We have strengthened our forces because this [incursion] is imminent. So in this situation, some strategic decisions have to be taken and these decisions have been taken," Asif said. Asif had previously said that Pakistan was not going to fight India unless it escalated the conflict.

The military had informed the government about the possibility of an attack from India.

The defense minister said that the country was on high alert, but stressed that it could use nuclear weapons only in the event of a direct threat to the existence of the state. Pakistan, like India, has nuclear weapons.

The attack killed 26 people and triggered outrage in Hindu-majority India, along with calls for action against Muslim-majority Pakistan. India accuses Pakistan of backing militancy in Kashmir, a region both claim and have fought two wars over.