The U.S. State Department announced on Sunday that Washington is actively engaging with both India and Pakistan, urging both nations to work toward a “responsible solution” amid rising tensions following a recent militant attack in Kashmir. While the U.S. has publicly expressed support for India, it has refrained from directly criticizing Pakistan. India has blamed Pakistan for the April 22 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, which tragically claimed the lives of over two dozen people. Pakistan has strongly denied any involvement and has called for an independent and neutral investigation into the incident.
A U.S. State Department spokesperson stated that the situation between India and Pakistan is evolving and that Washington is closely monitoring developments. “We have been in touch with the governments of India and Pakistan at multiple levels,” the spokesperson told Reuters via email. The United States has urged all parties to work together toward a responsible resolution. Additionally, the State Department reiterated Washington’s support for India, strongly condemning the recent terrorist attack in Pahalgam — echoing earlier remarks by President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance. India has emerged as an increasingly important U.S. partner, especially as Washington seeks to counter China’s growing influence in Asia. Meanwhile, although Pakistan remains a U.S. ally, its strategic importance has declined since the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from neighboring Afghanistan.
Michael Kugelman, a Washington-based South Asia analyst and contributor to Foreign Policy magazine, highlighted that India has now become a significantly closer U.S. partner compared to Pakistan. “This may concern Islamabad, as a potential Indian military response could receive U.S. sympathy under the banner of counter-terrorism, with Washington unlikely to intervene,” Kugelman told Reuters. He further noted that with the Trump administration deeply engaged in major global crises — including Russia’s war in Ukraine and Israel’s conflict in Gaza — Washington may be too occupied to mediate between India and Pakistan in the initial stages of any escalation. Similarly, Hussain Haqqani, former Pakistan ambassador to the U.S. and senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, remarked that there appears to be little appetite in Washington to de-escalate tensions at this time.
Hussain Haqqani further explained that deep-rooted tensions between India and Pakistan continue to fuel periodic escalations. “India has a longstanding grievance about terrorism originating or being supported from across the border, while Pakistan maintains a longstanding belief that India seeks to dismember it. Every few years, both nations work themselves into a frenzy,” Haqqani said. He added that, unlike in the past, there currently appears to be little U.S. interest in intervening to de-escalate the situation between India and Pakistan.
Escalating Tensions Between India and Pakistan
Kashmir, a Muslim-majority region, is claimed in its entirety by both Hindu-majority India and Islamic Pakistan, with each country controlling parts of the territory. The two nations have previously fought multiple wars over the disputed Himalayan region. Following the recent deadly attack in Kashmir, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a prominent Hindu nationalist leader, vowed to hunt down the perpetrators “to the ends of the earth,” promising that those responsible “will be punished beyond their imagination.” Calls for military action against Pakistan have been growing louder among Indian politicians and the public. In the aftermath of the attack, India and Pakistan have launched a series of retaliatory measures against each other, with Pakistan closing its airspace to Indian airlines and India suspending the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, which governs the sharing of the Indus River’s waters and its tributaries.
Tensions further escalated as India and Pakistan exchanged fire across their de facto border, breaking four years of relative calm. A little-known militant group, Kashmir Resistance, claimed responsibility for the recent attack through a social media post. Indian security agencies allege that Kashmir Resistance — also referred to as The Resistance Front — operates as a proxy for Pakistan-based militant organizations such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Hizbul Mujahideen. Meanwhile, Ned Price, a former U.S. State Department official under President Joe Biden’s administration, warned that while the Trump administration is treating the situation with appropriate sensitivity, its perceived unwavering support for India could risk fueling further tensions. “The Trump Administration has made clear it wishes to deepen the U.S.-India partnership — a laudable goal — but that it is willing to do so at almost any cost,” Price said. He added that unconditional support for India might encourage further escalation and violence between the nuclear-armed neighbors.
