Students in Lahore, Pakistan, celebrate after schools reopened following a ceasefire between Pakistan and India. - Photo: AFP
SINGAPORE: A top Indian envoy said the dispute over Kashmir is a bilateral issue with Pakistan, rejecting any external mediation on the matter despite the United States saying it wanted to facilitate talks.
“For us, Kashmir is a bilateral issue, not an international issue,” High Commissioner of India to Singapore Shilpak Ambule told Bloomberg TV’s Haslinda Amin on Monday (May 12). “For us, the word mediation does not work with the Kashmir issue.”
India and Pakistan agreed to a ceasefire on May 10 after four days of clashes that brought the nuclear-armed neighbours close to a full-blown war. The US said it helped mediate the de-escalation, but India has maintained that the truce was a result of bilateral talks.
The ceasefire happened because Pakistan’s director-general for military operations “got in touch” with his Indian counterpart, said Dr Ambule, adding that New Delhi achieved its objective of “destroying the terrorist camps”.
Pakistan’s army has said India first requested de-escalation.
For decades, India has rejected any outside mediation in Kashmir, an area of the Himalayas that both India and Pakistan claim in its entirety while governing separate parts. New Delhi has said the issue has to be resolved with Pakistan bilaterally, while Islamabad has historically sought international intervention.
On May 11, US President Donald Trump, on his social media platform Truth Social, said he would work with both India and Pakistan to see if “a solution can be arrived at concerning Kashmir”.
In his interview, Dr Ambule insisted that Kashmir talks are strictly between New Delhi and Islamabad.
“Diplomacy does happen and we speak to our counterparts, but that is to clarify our position and what is our demand of Pakistan,” he said.
Even during his first term, Trump attempted to intervene in the Kashmir issue, leading to a furious backlash in India.
When asked if India would hold talks with Pakistan in a neutral location – as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio claimed on May 10 that the two sides had agreed to – Dr Ambule said New Delhi “has never done that” as “terror and talks do not go together”.
Tensions between the two countries escalated sharply last week with drone and missile strikes on military sites. While there were reports of both sides violating the truce in the hours after it was called, the ceasefire appeared to be holding on May 11.
The Indian army said in a statement on May 12: “The night remained largely peaceful across Jammu and Kashmir and other areas along the international border. No incidents have been reported, marking the first calm night in recent days.”
More talks
Amid the uneasy truce, the military commanders in charge of operations from both sides are expected to hold talks on May 12.
In a statement on May 11, the State Department said Mr Rubio expressed US support for “direct dialogue” between the two South Asian nations.
Tensions first erupted on April 22, when gunmen killed 26 civilians, mainly tourists, in India’s Jammu and Kashmir region. India called the attack an act of terrorism and accused Pakistan of involvement, allegations Islamabad has denied.
New Delhi also suspended a crucial water-sharing treaty between the two nations.
Two weeks after the attacks, on May 7, India struck nine targets – which it described as terrorist camps – inside Pakistan, the deepest breach of that country’s territory by India since the 1971 war.
Dr Ambule said that despite the ceasefire, India will continue to keep the water treaty suspended.
“We need to end cross-border terrorism from Pakistan. Once that happens, we will see how we can look at the water treaty,” he said. - Bloomberg
