- By Ajeet Kumar
- Fri, 23 May 2025 07:18 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
India will deal with Pakistan purely bilaterally, there should be no confusion in any quarter in that regard, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said while addressing the press in Berlin on Friday. "I come to Berlin in the immediate aftermath of India responding to the Pahalgam terror attack. India has zero tolerance for terrorism. India will never give in to nuclear blackmail, and India will deal with Pakistan purely bilaterally. There should be no confusion in any quarter in that regard. We also value Germany's understanding that every nation has the right to defend itself against terrorism...,"Jaishankar said.
#WATCH | EAM Dr S Jaishankar says, "I come to Berlin in the immediate aftermath of India responding to the Pahalgam terror attack. India has zero tolerance for terrorism. India will never give in to nuclear blackmail, and India will deal with Pakistan purely bilaterally. There… pic.twitter.com/QhKfFsYmNO
— ANI (@ANI) May 23, 2025
Trump offers to mediate
The statement came days after US President Donald Trump's offer of mediation on the Kashmir issue, assertion on trade and his claims of defusing a nuclear conflict in the context of hostilities between Indian and Pakistani militaries following the Pahalgam terror attack.
India rejects Trump's claim
Consequently, India appeared to push back against Trump's mediation offer. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) also seemed to reject Trump's forceful comments that Washington brokered the understanding between India and Pakistan on ending their four-day military conflict. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, replying to a volley of questions at a media briefing on the US president's remarks on Kashmir, said India has a "longstanding" national position that any issue relating to it will have to be addressed by New Delhi and Islamabad bilaterally.
In a social media post on May 11, Trump claimed credit for helping India and Pakistan arrive at a “historic and heroic decision” to end their hostilities and offered to mediate on the Kashmir issue, saying he will work with both sides to see if a “solution can be arrived at concerning Kashmir”. Jaiswal said the arrangement was firmed up during a conversation over the hotline by Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) on May 10.
He said the Indian military’s “extremely effective attack” on key Pakistani air force bases on early May 10 forced Islamabad to stop military action. “Let me be clear. It was of force of Indian arms that compelled Pakistan to stop its firing,” he said, rebutting Trump’s claim.
Asked about Trump’s claim that his administration stopped a “nuclear conflict” between India and Pakistan, Jaiswal said India’s military action was entirely in the conventional domain.
“As you know, India has a firm stance that it will not give in to nuclear blackmail or allow cross-border terrorism to be conducted invoking it.” “In conversations with various countries, we also cautioned that their subscribing to such scenarios could hurt them in their own region,” he said.
(With inputs from agency)