Islamabad, Dec 4 (IANS): Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif Wednesday strongly denied news reports quoting him as having said that Kashmir was "a flashpoint and can trigger a fourth war" with India.
In a rebuttal of a report that appeared in the Dawn newspaper, the Prime Minister's Office said Sharif never uttered those words.
The statement said: "Prime Minister of Pakistan never uttered these words and the news item is baseless, incorrect and based on malafide intentions. The said news reports are strongly rebutted."
"Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is of the opinion that any issue of conflict between Pakistan and India has to be resolved through peaceful means," it said.
The Dawn quoted Sharif as saying that "Kashmir is a flashpoint and can trigger a fourth war between the two nuclear powers at anytime". He was addressing the budget session of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Council in Muzaffarabad.