Modi denies US mediation in ceasefire with Pakistan during talks with Trump

NEW DELHI (Reuters):  India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi told U.S. President Donald Trump late on Tuesday that a ceasefire between India and Pakistan after a four-day conflict in May was achieved through talks between the two militaries and not U.S. mediation, India’s senior-most diplomat said.

Trump had said last month that the nuclear-armed South Asian neighbours agreed to a ceasefire after talks mediated by the U.S., and that the hostilities ended after he urged the countries to focus on trade instead of war.

India has previously denied any third-party mediation and Tuesday’s phone call between Modi and Trump on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada, which Modi attended as a guest, is their first direct exchange since the May 7-10 conflict.

“PM Modi told President Trump clearly that during this period, there was no talk at any stage on subjects like India-U.S. trade deal or U.S. mediation between India and Pakistan,” Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said in a press statement.

“Talks for ceasing military action happened directly between India and Pakistan through existing military channels, and on the insistence of Pakistan. Prime Minister Modi emphasised that India has not accepted mediation in the past and will never do,” he said.

Misri said the two leaders were due to meet on the sidelines of the G7 summit, but Trump left a day early due to the situation in the Middle East.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the Modi-Trump call.

Pakistan has previously said that the ceasefire happened after its military returned a call the Indian military had initiated on May 7.

The heaviest fighting in decades between India and Pakistan was sparked by an April 22 attack in Indian Kashmir that killed 26 people, most of them tourists. New Delhi blamed the incident on “terrorists” backed by Pakistan, a charge denied by Islamabad.

On May 7, Indian jets bombed what New Delhi called “terrorist infrastructure” sites across the border, triggering tit-for-tat strikes spread over four days in which both sides used fighter jets, missiles, drones and artillery.

Misri said that Trump expressed his support for India’s fight against terrorism and that Modi told him India’s Operation Sindoor, under which it launched the cross-border strikes, was still on.

Trump also asked Modi if he could stop by the U.S. on his return from Canada, Misri said, but the Indian leader expressed his inability to do so due to a pre-decided schedule. He invited Trump to visit India later this year for the summit of the leaders of the Quad grouping, which Trump accepted, Misri said.