According a report by The Indian Express US Secretary John Kerry has had “two conversations” with the External Affairs Minister of India Sushma Swaraj over the “last two days” on the issue of India’s diplomatic options to isolate Pakistan.
The United States has asked India not to shoot up the circumstances with Pakistan anymore, according to the report.
Sushma Swaraj was in New York for the UN General Assembly, where she targetted Pakistan in a speech that she delivered on Monday.
These conversations, sources said, happened in the backdrop of India and Pakistan raising the temperature over the last two days. After a review of the implementation of the Indus Waters Treaty on Monday, India decided to pull out of the SAARC summit in Islamabad in November. And on Thursday, New Delhi is to review the Most Favoured Nation status to Pakistan.
Although this is the poll season in the US, the State Department is following the developments in the subcontinent quite intensely and according to The Indian Express report, sources have said that the US has praised India saying it has taken steps with a “lot of restraint” following the Uri attack. This is the first time that the US has spoken to the Indian leadership at a higher political level after the attack, said the sources.
After Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif met Kerry last week, US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Mark Toner said: “We’ve seen some progress; we want to see more, and I think moving forward we’ll just continue to work closely and try to encourage greater counter-terrorism cooperation with Pakistan but also within the region.”
State Department Spokesperson John Kirby stated later that Kerry “reiterated the need for Pakistan to prevent all terrorists from using Pakistani territory as safe havens, while commending recent efforts by Pakistani security forces to counter extremist violence.”
A readout of the meeting issued by the Pakistan embassy in New York revealed that Sharif had requested the “US Administration and Secretary Kerry to use his good offices to help in resolving bilateral issues between Pakistan and India.” Kerry met Sharif on the sidelines of the UNGA.
Sourced from agencies, Feature image courtesy: www.metroencounter.com
