Baba UmarWashington DC — United States has called on both India and Pakistan to de-escalate their current tensions following a deadly attack in Kashmir, saying America's top diplomat would be in touch with his Indian and Pakistani counterparts soon.
"We are reaching out to both parties and telling them to not escalate the situation," Tammy Bruce, spokesperson for the US Department of State, told foreign media on Tuesday.
She said the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, is expected to discuss the issue with foreign ministers of India and Pakistan "as early as today or tomorrow."
Rubio is encouraging "other national leaders and foreign ministers to also reach out to the countries on this issue," she added.
The United States had voiced solidarity after the April 22 attack in India-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam area in which gunmen killed 26 men.
Tensions between the nuclear rivals have been soaring since the attack.
On Tuesday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the army would enjoy "operational freedom" to respond to the attack.
Modi held a closed-door meeting with army and security chiefs, during which he told the armed forces that they had the "complete operational freedom to decide on the mode, targets and timing of our response to the terror attack," AFP news agency reported.
India accuses Pakistan of supporting the attack, a charge Pakistan denies, calling for an international investigation.
India has suspended the Indus Waters Treaty, a decades-old water-sharing agreement. Islamabad has condemned this action.
Pakistan has declared retaliatory measures, including closing its airspace to Indian airlines and suspending the Simla Agreement.
"I am close to India and Pakistan. They have had that fight for a 1000 years in Kashmir... Tensions on that border has been for 1500 years," says US President Donald Trump.
Mediation efforts
Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres spoke separately with Pakistani and Indian officials.
"The Secretary-General spoke today by telephone with H.E. Mr. Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and H.E. Mr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Minister for External Affairs of the Republic of India," according to a statement by Guterres' spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
China and Türkiye have called for immediate de-escalation.
Iran has offered to mediate, and Saudi Arabia said it is trying to "prevent an escalation."
US President Donald Trump has played down tensions, stating on Friday that the Kashmir dispute is older than 1,000 years and that leaders of both sides will "figure out, one way or another" how to lower down the tensions.
Bruce, however, stated that US is taking daily actions in this case and expects "impact" from Rubio's interactions with his South Asian counterparts.
"We're also monitoring the developments across the board in that region and we, as you know, at multiple levels, I have to say, are in touch with the governments of India and Pakistan, not just at the foreign minister level certainly, but at multiple levels," Bruce added.
"We of course are encouraging all parties to work together for a responsible solution. The world is watching this."
