(Asghar Ali Mubarak)
ISLAMABAD (Urdu Times) The international community is mobilized on the Indo-Pak tensions, while Pakistan has officially decided to brief the UN Security Council on the latest situation in the region. India’s move after the Pahalgam incident has failed to gain global support. Meanwhile, President Asif Ali Zardari has summoned a session of the National Assembly at 5 pm today at the Parliament House under Article 54, Clause 1.
It should be noted that India had announced the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty on April 23 after the death of 26 tourists in the Muslim-majority region of Pahalgam in occupied Kashmir on April 22. In response, the National Security Committee meeting decided to close trade with India and the Wagah border.
In addition, Pakistani airspace was also closed for Indian airlines, and Indian citizens were ordered to leave Pakistan within 48 hours.
The United Nations has urged India and Pakistan to show maximum restraint after the attack in occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
UN Secretary-General’s spokesman Stephane Dujarric urged both governments to exercise maximum restraint and ensure that the situation and the progress we have seen do not deteriorate further. China, Pakistan’s long-standing friend, has also appealed to both countries to exercise restraint. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiaqin said in a press briefing that “China hopes that both sides will exercise restraint, properly resolve relevant differences through dialogue and consultation, reach a consensus, and jointly maintain regional peace and stability.” On the other hand, the Gulf Cooperation Council has advised Pakistan and India to de-escalate tensions and resume talks, while urging the international community to intensify efforts to find a peaceful solution to the issue of occupied Jammu and Kashmir. Gulf Cooperation Council Secretary-General Jassim Al-Badawi has expressed the Council’s deep concern over the deteriorating security situation in South Asia. They have called for restraint and the immediate resumption of talks between Pakistan and India. The Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council also urged the international community to intensify its efforts to find a peaceful solution to the Jammu and Kashmir issue in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to Pakistan Nawaf bin Saeed Al-Maliki, UAE Ambassador Obaid Ibrahim Salem Al-Zabi and Kuwait’s Ambassador met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif separately. The ambassadors of these countries expressed their desire to work with Pakistan for peace and security in the region.
Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to Pakistan Nawaf bin Saeed Al-Maliki met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. The Prime Minister said that Saudi Arabia has always expressed solidarity with Pakistan, saying that Pakistan has condemned all forms and manifestations of terrorism.
The Prime Minister reiterated his demand for a transparent and impartial international investigation into the incident. The Prime Minister urged brotherly countries, including Saudi Arabia, to put pressure on India to reduce tensions in the region. The Saudi ambassador said that Saudi Arabia wants to work with Pakistan for peace and security in the region. Meanwhile, UAE Ambassador Hamad Obaid Ibrahim Salem Al Zaabi also called on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at the Prime Minister’s House. The Prime Minister thanked the UAE for its unwavering support for Pakistan. The meeting also discussed the situation in the region after the Pahalgam incident. The ambassador expressed his determination to work with Pakistan for regional peace and security. Meanwhile, the Kuwaiti ambassador met Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, in which detailed discussions were held regarding the Pahalgam incident. On this occasion, Shahbaz Sharif said that the two countries have always stood by each other. Shahbaz Sharif said that Pakistan condemns terrorist incidents in the region, India linked the Pahalgam incident to Pakistan without evidence. He said that Pakistan has offered the international community a transparent investigation into the incident. During the conversation between Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, India’s provocative behavior after the Pahalgam incident was discussed. On this occasion, Shahbaz Sharif, while talking about the incident in the tourist destination of Pahalgam in occupied Kashmir, said that Pakistan condemns terrorist incidents in the region and Pakistan does not want to get involved in such conflicts. It should be noted that immediately after the attack on tourists in the tourist valley of Pahalgam near occupied Kashmir on April 22, India had blamed Pakistan for the attack. India’s aggressive approach after the Pahalgam incident has suffered another diplomatic setback.
The international community showed strategic hesitation in this regard, which India had expected. Allegedly attributing the attack to cross-border terrorism, India adopted a confrontational stance towards Pakistan. But India’s response was not sudden, but it was part of a larger strategy that has been developing for the past decade. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government led by Narendra Modi, which not only sees matters through the lens of Hindu nationalist ideology, but is also pursuing another larger strategy, which is to change India’s role in the South Asian region and make it a powerful country in the region that has no rivals.
New Delhi saw the Pahalgam incident as an opportunity to strengthen this stance. India built this approach on the assumption that the global environment was favorable to it.
India’s growing ties with the United States, its central role in the Quad alliance, and its position against China convinced policymakers in New Delhi that strategic partners would offer unconditional support.
Pakistan, on the other hand, was seen as a weak state suffering from economic crisis while overly dependent on China. Thus, the escalation after the Pahalgam incident was a deliberate move to capitalize on India’s growing capabilities and redefine relations with Pakistan. However, India was disappointed to see that it failed to garner the expected global support that would legitimize its aggressive behavior. The United States preferred strategic stability and long-term partnership rather than taking sides,
China maintained its alliance with Pakistan and maintained neutrality on the issue, while the Gulf countries also acted cautiously on the issue.
US Vice President JD Vance was on a visit to India at the time of the Pahalgam attack, which reinforced the belief that Washington would implicitly support India. But those expectations were dashed when President Donald Trump did not take the issue seriously. US Vice President JD Vance has said that Washington hopes that India’s response to the recent attack in occupied Kashmir will not lead to a wider regional conflict.
As the global media questioned why India had not presented clear evidence against Pakistan, this increased suspicion, making it difficult for India to garner international support, unlike the 2019 Pulwama attack. Gulf countries, traditionally considered friends of India due to their strong trade ties with India and large Indian nationals living in their countries, also played a neutral role. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar have issued statements calling for a de-escalation and peaceful resolution of the issue. These responses were less about backing the Indian position and more about protecting their strategic interests. The response was less about supporting the Indian position and more about protecting its own strategic interests. Saudi Arabia, which is invested in regional stability, wants to avoid choosing between India and Pakistan. India’s closest economic partner, the United Arab Emirates, has a large Pakistani workforce and also values diplomatic balance. Qatar, known for its mediation diplomacy, has maintained a neutral stance in line with its broad foreign policy.