NewDelhi: National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval on Wednesday talked to US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on telephone.
During the conversation, Pompeo said NSA Doval that Washington supported India’s decision to take action against Jaish-e-Mohammad’s terror camp in Balakot, Pakistan, reported.
In a related development, the US State Department has urged both India and Pakistan to take immediate steps with an aim to de-escalate the situation and hold dialogue to reduce tension. The US has said New Delhi and Islamabad that further military activity will only worsen the situation between the two sides.
The US, however, backed India saying that cross-border terrorism, such as recent suicide attack on CRPF bus in Pulwama poses serious threat to the security of the area. The US reiterated that Pakistan must abide by its United Nations Security Council commitments to deny terrorists safe haven and take meaningful actions to block the access of terrorist groups to funds, reported.
Meanwhile, India’s Ambassador to the US, Harsh Vardhan Shringla, has said that New Delhi will not accept any act of terrorism silently and will give “appropriate response” to all terrorism incidents.
While interacting with Indian students from the various universities from the Greater Washington area, Shringla stressed that Pakistan must meet its international obligations to destroy terrorist networks and terrorists operating on its soil.
Reported that US Acting Defence Secretary Patrick Shanahan is in touch with the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, National Security Advisor John Bolton, Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Joseph Dunford, and Commander of US Central Command General Joseph Votel regarding India-Pakistan tensions.
“Acting Secretary Shanahan’s focus is on de-escalating tensions and urging both of the nations to avoid further military action,” the Pentagon said in a statement.
Just 11 days after the Pulwama terror attack, which claimed the lives of 40 CRPF personnel, India retaliated strongly by dropping bombs at Jaish-e-Mohammad’s biggest training camp in Balakot in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. On Wednesday, three Pakistani fighter jets violated Indian airspace and entered in Jammu and Kashmir but they were pushed back by Indian Air Force.
Bureau Report
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