India and Pakistan on Saturday agreed to a ceasefire following U.S.-led talks to end the most serious military confrontation in decades between the nuclear-armed rivals.
The development follows weeks of clashes, missiles and drone strikes across their border that were triggered by an attack on tourists last month in the Indian-controlled section of the disputed region of Kashmir. India blamed that attack on Pakistan, which denied the charge.
It was the two countries’ most serious confrontation in decades and left dozens of civilians dead on both sides.
The first word on the truce Saturday came from U.S. President Donald Trump, who posted on his Truth Social platform that he was pleased to announce India and Pakistan had agreed to a full and immediate ceasefire.
“Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence.”
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said Saudi Arabia and Turkey played an important role in facilitating the deal, which came into effect at 4:30 p.m. local time.
Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said the heads of military operations from India and Pakistan spoke Saturday afternoon.
“It was agreed between them that both sides would stop all firing and military action on land, and in the air and sea. Instructions have been given on both sides to give effect to this understanding.”
The top military leaders would speak again on Monday, Misri added.
The deal has brought a swift end to military escalation.
India said it targeted Pakistani air bases early Saturday after Islamabad fired several high-speed missiles at military and civilian infrastructure in India’s Punjab state. Pakistan said it intercepted most missiles and responded with retaliatory strikes on India.
The India-Pakistan conflict is escalating as blasts, civilian deaths and tensions rise. Freelance journalist Zafar Aafaq, who’s in India-administered Kashmir, says it’s ‘very hard’ to predict how the situation will develop.
Before the ceasefire was announced, Dar said Saturday his country would consider de-escalation if India stopped further attacks.
Dar told Pakistan’s Geo News that he also conveyed this message to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who contacted him after Rubio spoke to New Delhi earlier.
“We responded because our patience had reached its limit. If they stop here, we will also consider stopping,” Dar added.
Rubio spoke to his Indian counterpart, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, and emphasized “both sides need to identify methods to de-escalate and re-establish direct communication to avoid miscalculation,” State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said, and offered U.S. support to facilitate “productive discussion.”
Tensions between the nuclear-armed rivals have soared since an attack at a popular tourist site in India-controlled Kashmir left 26 civilians dead, mostly Hindu Indian tourists, on April 22.
In a G7 statement, the foreign ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the U.S., Britain and the European Union said they “strongly condemned” the April 22 Islamist militant attack in Kashmir.
