PM Modi said meeting India's "brave air warriors and soldiers" was a "very special experience"
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday visited Punjab's Adampur air base and interacted with soldiers, days after India and Pakistan agreed to a ceasefire.
Adampur was among the air force stations that Pakistan attempted to attack on the intervening night of May 9 and 10 after India's "Operation Sindoor". Pakistan also claimed that its hypersonic missiles fired from JF-17 fighter jets destroyed India's S-400 air defence system in Adampur, a charge rejected by the Indian officials.
PM Modi also countered Pakistan's claim and shared a photograph that showed him making a salute with the S-400's missile stack in the background.
"Earlier this morning, I went to AFS Adampur and met our brave air warriors and soldiers. It was a very special experience to be with those who epitomise courage, determination and fearlessness. India is eternally grateful to our armed forces for everything they do for our nation," PM Modi posted on X, and shared pictures with them.
The Prime Minister's visit to the Air Force station comes a day after he praised the country's "formidable" armed forces following a successful "Operation Sindoor", which was launched on May 7 in response to the deadly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam last month.
Addressing the nation on Monday, PM Modi said the Indian armed forces displayed "unwavering courage" in achieving the objectives of the operations, during which India attacked nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), and killed more than 100 terrorists.
"Operation Sindoor is now India's established policy in the fight against terrorism, marking a decisive shift in India's strategic approach," PM Modi said, adding that the operation has set a "new normal" in counter-terrorism measures.
He also pointed out that during "Operation Sindoor", the world once again witnessed Pakistan's "ugly face" when senior Pakistani military officials attended funerals of terrorists, calling it "strong evidence" of state-sponsored terrorism.
After finding cross-border links to the April 22 attack, which left 26 people dead, the Indian armed forces launched " Operation Sindoor" and destroyed multiple camps of terror groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and Hizbul Mujahideen.
In response, the Pakistani Army launched drones and missiles at western parts of India, which were successfully intercepted. India then hit selected military targets deep inside Pakistani territory.
The two countries reached a ceasefire agreement last Saturday to halt military actions with immediate effect after four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes.
