US Urges India, Pakistan to ‘Exercise Restraint’: Pompeo

The U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke separately with the foreign ministers of India and Pakistan and urged them to avoid “further military activity” following an air strike by India inside Pakistan.

Pompeo spoke with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi to stress on the priority of de-escalating current tensions by avoiding military action, and the urgency of Pakistan taking meaningful action against terrorist groups operating on its soil, the US Department of State said in a statement.

“We encourage India and Pakistan to exercise restraint, and avoid escalation at any cost,” Pompeo said Tuesday.

He also urged both Ministers to prioritize direct communication and avoid further military activity.

Meanwhile, Shah Mehmood Qureshi told the U.S. Secretary of State that the Indian ‘violation’ could affect the ongoing Afghan peace process.

This comes hours after the Indian jets conducted air strikes against a militant camp in Pakistani territory on early Tuesday.

The Indian officials said on Tuesday that the air strikes hit a training camp of Jaish-e-Mohammed, the group that claimed responsibility for a suicide car bomb attack killed at least 40 Indian paramilitary police in Kashmir on February 14 and raised tension between the two nuclear-armed neighbors

Pakistan says there were no casualties in the strike, while India says it hit a terrorist training camp and killed a “very large number” of militants.

The Indian aircraft “released payload in haste while escaping which fell near Balakot”. There were “no casualties or damage,” Pakistan Army spokesman Asif Ghafoor wrote on Twitter.

Pakistan’s Foreign Minister in a video message called the airstrikes as ‘grave aggression’ by violating the line of control.

He stressed, “Pakistan deserves the right to self-defense and adequate response.”