New Delhi [India], July 30 – India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Wednesday firmly rejected claims that the recent ceasefire with Pakistan was influenced by any third-party intervention or tied to trade discussions, directly contradicting comments made by former US President Donald Trump.
Speaking during a special session in the Rajya Sabha on Operation Sindoor, Jaishankar made it clear that the decision to halt military action was taken independently by the Indian government. “There was no third-party mediation. There were no trade-offs or trade links involved in halting the military operation,” he said, referring to Trump’s earlier remarks suggesting a diplomatic backchannel.
He also clarified that there were no phone calls between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Trump between April 22, the day of the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, and June 16, the period during which the ceasefire was put in place.
Operation Sindoor, launched in response to the April 22 attack, was a focused military action against terror camps and infiltration routes across the Line of Control (LoC). The ceasefire that followed had prompted speculation, particularly after Trump suggested the US had played a role in easing tensions.
Jaishankar used the opportunity to criticize the opposition Congress party, accusing it of failing to take decisive action in response to terror attacks during its tenure. “They have a habit of self-hyphenating India with Pakistan on terrorism,” he said, alluding to Congress’s past handling of cross-border issues.
The remarks underscore India’s long-standing position that any talks or decisions involving Pakistan, especially on sensitive issues like cross-border terrorism, will be bilateral and not mediated by external powers.
India and Pakistan maintain a fragile ceasefire agreement along the LoC, but tensions continue to flare intermittently, often triggered by terror incidents in Jammu and Kashmir. While both sides have periodically agreed to de-escalate, such statements from senior Indian officials reaffirm New Delhi’s policy of strategic autonomy in regional security matters.