Roving Periscope: After Gaza and Ukraine failures, the US now urges India, Pak to de-escalate

Virendra Pandit

New Delhi: After his efforts to bring peace in Gaza and Ukraine failed to bear tangible fruit so far, US President Donald Trump’s administration has urged Pakistan and India to de-escalate tension that has gripped the two countries after the April 22 massacre at Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, carried out by Islamabad-backed Islamist terrorists who killed at least 26 tourists, and wounded many others.

The US appeal for de-escalation came on Wednesday during its Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s talks with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. Rubio also called Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the media reported on Thursday.

Dr. Jaishankar emphasized that the “perpetrators, their backers, and planners must be brought to justice,” an American euphemism for stern action.

With the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine still on, the US attempts to halt another war before it starts came a week after the Pahalgam massacre. Even during this period, Pakistan has been provoking India by indiscriminately firing upon Indian soldiers on the Line of Control (LoC).

Amid heightened tensions between the two neighbours, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio dialled both External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, calling for de-escalation, and maintenance of peace and security in South Asia.

US Department of State spokesperson Tammy Bruce said that Rubio expressed his sorrow for the lives lost in the horrific terrorist attack in Pahalgam, and reaffirmed the United States’ commitment to cooperate with India against terrorism.

“He also encouraged India to work with Pakistan to de-escalate tensions and maintain peace and security in South Asia,” the spokesperson said.

On his part, Dr. Jaishankar posted on X early Thursday morning that he had discussed the Pahalgam attack with the US Secretary. “Its perpetrators, backers and planners must be brought to justice,” he wrote.

Regarding Rubio’s conversation with Sharif, a readout by the Department of State said that he spoke of the need to condemn the terror attack. Both leaders reaffirmed their continued commitment to holding terrorists accountable for their heinous acts of violence, it said.

“The Secretary urged Pakistani officials’ cooperation in investigating this unconscionable attack. He also encouraged Pakistan to work with India to de-escalate tensions, re-establish direct communications, and maintain peace and security in South Asia,” the statement read.

Hours after the call, Pakistan appointed Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Lieutenant General Asim Malik as the National Security Advisor (NSA) to Sharif, as an additional charge, to coordinate Pakistan’s politico-military response to the crisis and undertake any back-channel talks that may be held.

Following the Pahalgam massacre, Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed to bring the preparators of the attack to justice and announced that armed forces have “full operational freedom to decide the mode, timing, and target of India’s response to the recent terror attack in Pahalgam.”

The decision came after a crucial meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) he held with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi, Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K. Tripathi, and Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh on April 29.

After India took strong measures against it, Pakistan has put its entire military on high alert, even as the Indian security forces led by the Army continue the hunt for the four terrorists who carried out the killings.

Since the attack, the fragile ceasefire agreement renewed in 2021 is up in flames, with regular exchange of fire all along the Line of Control, and even at places along the International Border in the Jammu region.

Earlier, US State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce had said, “Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar today. The Secretary expressed his sorrow for the lives lost in the horrific terrorist attack in Pahalgam, and reaffirmed the United States’ commitment to cooperation with India against terrorism. He also encouraged India to work with Pakistan to de-escalate tensions and maintain peace and security in South Asia.”

The US has also reached out to India and Pakistan, asking them “not to escalate the situation”. US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce told the press: “Every day action is being taken. In this case, the Secretary speaking directly to his counterparts in India and Pakistan… We expect… the impact he has usually had with the individuals he has spoken with, and certainly with President Trump’s leadership, India and Pakistan having those conversations. It’s very important for them.”

Calls for restraint and de-escalation are not new.

In 2019, after the Pulwama terror attack, Mike Pompeo, the then US Secretary of State, had spoken with the then EAM, Sushma Swaraj, calling for de-escalation and exercising restraint.

In 2016, after the Uri terror attack, John Kerry, who was then US Secretary of State, had called Sushma Swaraj and called for de-escalation.