Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan announced that Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman will be released on Friday as a "peace gesture". Khan made the announcement at the joint session of the Pakistan parliament on Thursday.
"Yesterday I tried to call (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi to say that we don't want escalation. Our push for de-escalation doesn't mean we are afraid," Imran Khan said. "We have an Indian pilot. As a peace gesture, we will release him tomorrow."
The announcement was greeted by thumping of desks by Pakistani lawmakers.
The surprise announcement came barely an hour after Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said that Prime Minister Khan is ready to talk to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to de-escalate Indo-Pak tensions.
Qureshi had said that Pakistan was willing for an all-positive engagement. “If there is de-escalation with the return of this [Indian] pilot, Pakistan is willing to consider this. We are ready for all positive engagement," Pakistan-based Geo News quoted Qureshi as saying on Thursday.
Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman was captured by Pakistani forces on Thursday after an aerial combat between Indian and Pakistani forces went awry. But before Abhinandan's MiG 21 went down, he had managed to shoot down two Pakistani pilots and downed an F-16 jet, claimed government sources.
However, India had asserted that there was no question of any deal on the return of Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman.
India had earlier clarified that it had not asked for consular access to the IAF pilot and had insisted on his unconditional and immediate return.