US contacted India, but ceasefire with Pakistan was bilaterally negotiated: Jaishankar
New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has clarified that the recent ceasefire between India and Pakistan following Operation Sindoor was the result of direct negotiations between the two countries, despite the United States having reached out during the conflict.
Speaking to Dutch broadcaster NOS during his visit to the Netherlands, Jaishankar acknowledged that US Secretary of State Rubio and Vice President Vance had contacted Indian leadership. However, he emphasized that the decision to halt military action was made bilaterally.
“The US did call up. They were concerned, like many others. But the cessation of firing and military action was something negotiated directly between India and Pakistan,” Jaishankar stated.
Refuting earlier claims by former US President Donald Trump that he had mediated the ceasefire, Jaishankar reiterated that Pakistan had first communicated its willingness to cease hostilities via a hotline on May 10. India responded accordingly.
“We have a mechanism to talk to each other. It was the Pakistani army that sent a message that they were ready to stop firing,” he said.
On the broader issue of Kashmir, Jaishankar reaffirmed India's stance that it is an integral part of the country. He described the area under Pakistani control as “illegally occupied” since 1947-48.
“No country negotiates a part of its own territory. Kashmir is part of India,” he said, adding that discussions with Pakistan should focus on when it plans to vacate the occupied region.
Jaishankar also highlighted Pakistan’s continued use of cross-border terrorism as a pressure tactic, describing it as part of a radical and extremist strategy by Islamabad’s leadership, particularly the military.
Commenting on India's recent security concerns, Jaishankar said the Pahalgam terror attack—which killed 26 tourists—was designed to destabilize Kashmir’s tourism-based economy and incite religious discord. He linked the attack to Lashkar-e-Tayyaba, asserting that the group’s command centres were targeted by Indian forces on May 7.
“India faces more serious security threats than Europe. That’s why we must prioritise national security,” he said, while expressing confidence in India’s economic fundamentals and demographic advantages.
Jaishankar dismissed Trump's claim of using trade leverage to avoid nuclear conflict, saying that peace and diplomacy remain India’s preferred path, but without external mediation.
“This is something between us and the Pakistanis,” Jaishankar concluded.
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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.
