Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States urged President Donald Trump to help work out an agreement with India, according to a Fox News Digital report Friday, May 2.
In an exclusive interview with the news outlet, Ambassador Rizwan Saeed Sheikh called what’s happening a “nuclear flashpoint.”
“It could be an important part of President Trump’s legacy to attend to this situation — not with a Band-Aid solution, but by addressing the core issue: the Kashmir dispute,” he said to Fox.
Disputed territory
India and Pakistan both claim the entire territory of Kashmir while controlling different parts of it. The two countries have fought three wars since 1947, two of which were over the region.
In the early morning hours of Wednesday, April 30, Pakistani officials claimed they had “credible intelligence” about expected Indian military action.
These allegations came after gunmen opened fire on a group of pilgrims in Pahalgam, a popular tourist destination in the Kashmir Valley, on April 22. According to Indian officials, 26 people were killed in the attack, which they called a deliberate targeting of Hindus.
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India and Pakistan both claim the entire territory of Kashmir. Two of the three wars the countries have fought since 1947 were over the region.
Pakistan denied involvement. Saeed told Fox that Pakistan’s request for evidence tying it to the attack and an offer to participate in a neutral inquiry went unanswered.
On Saturday, May 3, India’s military said troops from Pakistan fired across the border for a ninth consecutive night, according to the Associated Press. Pakistan test-fired a ballistic missile as well, the AP reported.
International reactions
Along with Trump, Saeed said he wanted other countries to help with a deal, according to Fox.
“Previously, when the situation has been at this level or the tensions have escalated, the international community has attended to the situation, but taken their eyes, their attention away, even before the situation could fully diffuse,” Saeed said. “This time, perhaps it would be… timely in terms of the situation elsewhere on the globe, with similar instances, which one can note and see and are being attended to, to perhaps not afford a Band-Aid solution, but to address the broader problem.”
The United Nations warned about the dangers of escalation. According to a spokesperson, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres held calls with officials in Pakistan and India on Tuesday, April 29, and urged them to avoid a conflict with “tragic consequences.”
On April 30, Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke to Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Pakistan’s Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif. According to statements from State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce, Rubio encouraged both countries to de-escalate tensions and maintain peace and security in South Asia.
While boarding Air Force One on Friday, April 25, Trump said the countries will “get it figured out one way or the other,” adding, “There’s great tension between Pakistan and India, but there always has been.”
