Pahalgam attack: US urges India, Pak to de-escalate tensions; backs Delhi's fight against terrorism
New Delhi, May 1 (PTI): The US has urged India and Pakistan to work together to de-escalate tensions over the Pahalgam terror attack as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio held separate talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to emphasise on maintaining "peace and security" in South Asia.
In his phone conversation with Sharif, the US Secretary of State called for Islamabad's cooperation in investigating the "unconscionable attack" that killed 26 people.
The "perpetrators, backers and planners" of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack must be brought to justice, Jaishankar said on X, hours after speaking to Rubio who reaffirmed Washington's support to India's fight against terrorism.
The US Secretary of State spoke to Sharif and Jaishankar on Wednesday amid speculation about India's possible military strikes against Pakistan in view of the cross border linkages to the dastardly terror attack.
A day after the Jaishankar-Rubio talks, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth dialled Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and conveyed that Washington supports New Delhi's "right to defend" itself and its fight against terrorism.
Singh told Hegseth that Pakistan has been "exposed" as a "rogue" state fuelling global terrorism, and "destabilising" the region, adding the world can no longer turn a "blind eye" to terrorism.
In his phone conversation with Jaishankar, Rubio expressed his "sorrow" for the lives lost in the "horrific" terror attack and reaffirmed the US' commitment to cooperation with India against terrorism, according to the US State Department.
"Discussed the Pahalgam terrorist attack with US @SecRubio yesterday. Its perpetrators, backers and planners must be brought to justice," the external affairs minister said on X.
US State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce said: "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," she said.
On Rubio's phone talks with Sharif, Bruce said the Secretary encouraged Pakistan to work with India to de-escalate "tensions, re-establish direct communications, and maintain peace and security in South Asia".
"The Secretary spoke of the need to condemn the terror attack on April 22 in Pahalgam. Both leaders reaffirmed their continued commitment to holding terrorists accountable for their heinous acts of violence," she said.
"The secretary urged Pakistani officials' cooperation in investigating this unconscionable attack," Bruce added.
During the phone call, Sharif rejected "India's attempt to link Pakistan" to the Pahalgam attack and reiterated Islamabad's call for an impartial investigation into it, according to a Pakistani readout.
Citing "cross-border linkages" to the horrific attack, India has promised severe punishment to those involved in the strike.
In a high-level meeting with the top defence brass, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday asserted that the armed forces have "complete operational freedom" to decide on the mode, targets and timing of India's response to the terror attack, according to government sources.
The prime minister affirmed that it is a national resolve to deal a crushing blow to terrorism, they said after the meeting.
India on April 23 announced a raft of punitive measures against Pakistan including suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, shutting down of the only operation land border crossing at Attari and downgrading of diplomatic ties in view of cross-border links to the attack.
In response, Pakistan shut its airspace to Indian airliners and suspended all trade with India, including through third countries.
Pakistan rejected India's suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty and said any move to stop the flow of water will be seen as an "act of war".
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Two injuries, one DNF, a DQ as India end messy World Relays campaign
Gaborone (Botswana) (PTI): Amoj Jacob and Ragul Kumar got injured during the men's 4x400m and 4x100 races respectively as India ended their World Athletics Relays campaign in disappointment on the second day of competitions here on Sunday.
The Indian camp had high hopes of making the 2027 World Championships in the men's 4x400m relay but the team did not finish (DNF) the race as Jacob suffered cramps and pulled out of the race after taking the baton from the first leg runner Dharamveer Choudhary. Rajesh Ramesh and Vishal TK were to run in the third and fourth legs.
Those teams which could not qualify for the 2027 Beijing World Championships by reaching the final round of each of the six relay events on Saturday were given another chance in the second qualification round on Sunday.
The top two teams in each of the two heats (in all six relay events) booked the Beijing ticket on Sunday.
India will now have to try and qualify for the World Championships through the Top Lists of the World Athletics, which is a long and tedious process.
In the men's 4x100m race, third leg runner Ragul Kumar fell down the track after failing to hand over the baton inside the exchange zone to fourth leg runner Gurindervir Singh, which clearly showed the lack of coordination among the runners.
Harsh Santosh Raut and Animesh Kujur ran the first two legs.
The Indian quartet was disqualified and Kumar was seen being taken away from the Field of Play with the help of the volunteers.
It was a comedy of errors in the case of the women's 4x100m race, which saw the baton being dropped during an exchange between first leg runner Tamanna and second runner Nithya Gandhe, though the Indians finished the race in 53.09 seconds.
Gandhe started running quite a distance, but after realising that the baton was not in her hand, she turned and ran back to pick it up.
The only silver-lining for the Indian contingent was the national record time in the mixed 4x100m relay race, though the quartet of Ragul Kumar, Nithya Gandhe, Animesh Kujur and Sneha SS finished sixth in heat number two with a time of 41.35 seconds, bettering the previous national mark of 42.30 seconds set in March in Chandigarh.
The mixed 4x400m relay quartet of Theerthesh P Shetty, Kumari Saloni, Nihal William and Rashdeep Kaur ended at fifth in heat number one with a time of 3 minutes and 19.40 seconds.
On Saturday, all the five Indian relay teams had failed to make it to the respective final rounds and thus missed out on the 2027 World Championships berths.
