India-Pakistan Conflict: As tension between India and Pakistan continues to escalate following Pakistan's drone and missile attack on multiple areas, the United States has issued a fresh statement asking the two neighbouring countries to defuse the conflict at the earliest. Speaking on the prevailing tensions at the LoC, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that US President Donald Trump has expressed his desire for the situation to de-escalate as soon as possible. On the efforts made by Washington to mediate in the conflict, Leavitt said, "This is something that the Secretary of State and now our NSA as well, Marco Rubio, has been involved in.
The President has expressed that he wants this to de-escalate as quickly as possible." "He (US President Trump) understands these two countries have been at odds with one another for decades, long before President Trump was here at the Oval Office. However, he has good relations with the leaders of both countries," she further stated.
"Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been in constant communication with the leaders of both countries, trying to bring this conflict to an end," Leavitt said. Asked if the President was planning to speak to leaders of the two countries, Levitt said she will let reporters know when that happens. At present, Secretary of State Rubio is spearheading US engagement in the region.
She said the secretary has been “in constant communication with the leaders of both countries trying to bring this conflict to an end”. Secretary Rubio spoke on Thursday with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. While expressing sorrow over the deaths in the April 22 Pahalgam terrorist attack by a Pakistan-based outfit, the secretary “encouraged India to work with Pakistan to de-escalate tensions and maintain peace and security in South Asia”.
The message he conveyed to Sharif also stressed the need to de-escalate tension but also said Pakistan needs to “end “end any support for terrorist groups” endorsing the Indian position that Pakistan has been a supporter of terrorism. Tammy Bruce, the State Department spokesperson, has said the US message to both India and Pakistan has been twofold: “That it should not escalate, and communication was fundamentally key, that there should be talks, that there should not be silence, and that America, obviously, was at the center of this, in speaking with a variety of leaders of both countries over the last two days."
