Pakistan, India row over airspace'violation'

PAKISTAN: Pakistan accused India's air force of violating its airspace, drawing a swift denial from New Delhi, as Britain's visiting prime minister sought to defuse tensions on Sunday.

Pakistan's statement that Indian jets made an "inadvertent" intrusion threatened to further harm ties between the nuclear-armed South Asian states, whose relations have plummeted in the wake of the Mumbai attacks.

"There has not been any airspace violation as has been alleged," Wing Commander Mahesh Upasani, spokesman for the Indian Air Force, told AFP.

The row broke out as British leader Gordon Brown, who will visit Pakistan later, held talks with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Relations between India and Pakistan have deteriorated in the wake of the devastating siege on India's financial capital, which New Delhi has blamed on "elements" in Pakistan.

Islamabad, Sunday, AFP