U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that India and Pakistan had agreed to a “full and immediate ceasefire” after a fourth day of strikes and counter-strikes against each other’s military installations.
Pakistan’s foreign minister also said both countries had agreed to a ceasefire “with immediate effect” and India’s foreign ministry said it would start at 5 p.m. Indian time (1130 GMT).
“After a long night of talks mediated by the United States, I am pleased to announce that India and Pakistan have agreed to a FULL AND IMMEDIATE CEASEFIRE. Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
The sudden announcement came on a day when fears spiked that the countries’ nuclear arsenals might come into play as Pakistan’s military said a top military and civilian body overseeing its nuclear weapons would meet.
But Pakistan’s defence minister later said no such meeting was scheduled.
At the same time, officials from both sides showed a willingness to take a step back following the day’s exchanges, as the combined civilian death toll on the two sides rose to 66.
“Pakistan and India have agreed to a ceasefire with immediate effect,” Pakistani Foreign minister Ishaq Dar posted on X. “Pakistan has always strived for peace and security in the region, without compromising on its sovereignty and territorial integrity!”
India’s foreign ministry said that the head of Pakistan’s military operations called his Indian counterpart on Saturday afternoon and it was agreed that both sides would stop all firing.
The two heads will speak to each other again on May 12, the ministry added.
The fighting began on Wednesday when India carried out strikes on what it said was “terrorist infrastructure” in Pakistani Kashmir and Pakistan, two weeks after 26 people were killed in an attack on Hindu tourists in Indian Kashmir.
Pakistan denied India’s accusations that it was involved in the tourist attack. Since Wednesday, the two countries have exchanged cross-border fire and shelling, and sent drones and missiles into each other’s airspace.
The countries have been locked in a dispute over Kashmir since they were born after the end of British colonial rule in 1947. Hindu-majority India and Islamic Pakistan both claim Kashmir in full but rule it in part.
They have gone to war three times since, including twice over Kashmir, and clashed several times.
India blames Pakistan for an insurgency in its part of Kashmir that began in 1989 and has killed tens of thousands. It also blames Pakistani Islamist militant groups for attacks elsewhere in India.
Pakistan rejects both charges. It says it only provides moral, political and diplomatic support to Kashmiri separatists.
Source: Reuters
--Agencies
