NEW DELHI/ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Nuclear-armed India said Wednesday it was prepared to use its full military might to defend itself amid threats by Pakistan-based Islamic militant groups to mount further attacks on the country.
Nuclear rivals Pakistan and India have come to the brink of war following an assault last month on India's parliament which New Delhi blamed on Pakistan-based Kashmiri separatists.
``Whatever weapon is available, we will use it to defend ourselves,'' Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee said in his constituency of Lucknow in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.
``And if because of that weapon the attacker is defeated ... if he is killed, we should not be held responsible,'' said Vajpayee, who analysts say is under pressure to appear tough ahead of state elections in the politically crucial state of Uttar Pradesh.
Following the parliament attack in which 14 people died, India demanded that Pakistan crack down on Muslim militants operating from its soil against India and said all options were open including war unless Islamabad acted.
Earlier the country's Defense Minister George Fernandes told Reuters that Indian forces had completed their biggest-ever buildup but were ``not in battle positions.''
He held out hope that diplomacy could still avert a war with Pakistan. ``Efforts are being made to defuse the situation through diplomatic intervention,'' he said.