New Delhi: The US has called on India and Pakistan to work towards a ‘responsible’ solution, after tensions have escalated in recent days following the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, which has left at least 26 people dead.
The Department of State is “in touch with both India and Pakistan” and urged both countries to work together towards a solution to the current situation, Reuters reported Monday. The comments from the Department of State to Reuters, comes after days of strong public support announced by US President Donald J. Trump and his administration officials in favour of India.
On 22 April, at least four gunmen wielding AK-47 rifles sprayed bullets at tourists near Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, which killed 25 Indians and one foreign national. The attack was among the most significant against civilians in the Union Territory in recent years.
Trump was the first world leader to call Prime Minister Narendra Modi last Tuesday when news first broke of the attack. Modi spoke to the American President while preparing to return from the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah. The Indian PM cut short his visit to Jeddah and returned early Wednesday morning to India.
US Vice-President J.D. Vance, who was on a trip to India at the time of the attack, also spoke to Modi to convey his condolences over the terrorist attack. Senior administration officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of the FBI Kash Patel and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard have come out with strong statements in support of India.
Gabbard went so far as to describe the situation as a “horrific Islamist terrorist attack targeting and killing 26 Hindus”, while offering Washington’s help in hunting down the terrorists. Over a 100 lawmakers, including at least 75 members of the House of Representatives and 25 members of the US Senate, have reacted to the attack.
The Charge D’Affaires of the US Embassy in New Delhi Jorgan K. Andrews was briefed on the cross-border links to the Pahalgam attack by Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri last week, along with a number of other top diplomats from various missions.
India has imposed a number of punitive measures against Pakistan, including holding the Indus Waters Treaty in “abeyance” apart from expelling three Pakistani defence advisers and annulling the posts. The Attari border has also been closed, while the visas of Pakistani nationals have been revoked by New Delhi as well.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken to at least 16 international leaders in the last few days, while External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has also held calls with his counterparts and is expected to hold more such conversations in the near future.
China, the world’s second largest economy Sunday also urged for de-escalation of tensions, while calling for an “impartial” probe into the attacks, after a call between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar.
The call from Beijing to de-escalate tensions comes as Islamabad is shoring up its own diplomatic support, with Dar holding calls with his British counterpart David Lammy, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and few others over the past few days.
(Edited by Zinnia Ray Chaudhuri)
Also read: India & Taliban-led Afghan govt hold talks in Kabul amid rising regional tensions post-Pahalgam
The statement “In touch with both India & Pakistan” from USA is hardly anything to be happy about. When Modi advised Russia and Ukraine that “it is not an era of war” even after Russia invaded Ukraine, a terrorist attack cannot be a sufficient to wage war. Even Israel waged war on Hamas only after terrorists of Hamas entered into Israel, killed thousands and took hundreds as hostages. The most practical solution for India is to isolate Pakistan internationally, especially economically so that it becomes very difficult for Pakistan army to support any terror groups. Also India must improve its border patrol so that no terrorists, no drones can enter India. If possible Modi should use die-hard RSS guys in covert operations to bleed Pakistan by a lakh of cuts.