Russia’s foreign minister Sergey Lavrov has urged India and Pakistan to settle their disagreements bilaterally through political and diplomatic means.
Union external affairs minister S Jaishankar with Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov in South Africa.(PTI)
In a phone call with his Indian counterpart, S Jaishankar, on May 2, Lavrov discussed bilateral relations between India and Russia and also the recent aggravation in relations between New Delhi and Islamabad after the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, in which 26 people were killed.
“They discussed issues of Russian-Indian cooperation and the aggravation of Indian-Pakistani relations following the terrorist attack in Pahalgam. Sergey Lavrov called for settling disagreements between New Delhi and Islamabad on a bilateral basis by political and diplomatic means per the provisions of the Simla Agreement of 1972 and the Lahore Declaration of 1999, ” a release issued by the ministry of foreign affairs of the Russian Federation said, according to ANI.
“The ministers also discussed the schedule of upcoming contacts at the highest levels,” it added.
Following the terror attack, India announced a series of measures in response to Pakistan’s support for cross-border terrorism.
These included the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, closing the Integrated Check Post at Attari, and reducing the staffing of High Commissions.
The Indian government also cancelled all types of visas granted to Pakistani nationals and ordered them to leave by April 30. India also closed its airspace for flights operated by Pakistan Airlines.
In retaliation, Pakistan announced the suspension of all trade with India, including to and from any third country through Pakistan and barred Indian airlines from using its airspace.
Pakistani forces have also been violating ceasefire along the border for eighth consecutive day, opening small arms fire along the Line of Control (LoC) in five Jammu and Kashmir districts.
At a key security meeting on April 29, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the armed forces have full operational freedom to determine the mode, targets, and timing of India’s response to the terrorist attack in Pahalgam.
“It is our national resolve to deliver a crushing blow to terrorism,” Modi said, according to sources in the government.