NEW DELHI: Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Friday took a swipe at US President Donald Trump for claiming credit for settling hostilities between India and Pakistan, saying that no formal process of mediation was either requested or conducted by any third party.
Tharoor, who is set to lead an all-party MPs delegation in the US, said that the government updated world leaders, including foreign ministers of various countries, about India's action against Pakistan.
"You're aware of our government's stand very clearly. During any crisis, there's always contact with those countries that call and reach out. We have taken the same line everywhere. There's been no formal process of mediation, either requested or conducted. You call me, I tell you what I'm doing and why I'm doing it, and that's it. Then if you want to go and repeat that to somebody else and they take certain consequences as a result of that, is that called mediation? I don't think so. Not in my vocabulary," Tharoor said.
"But in any case, we are always a country that talks in a very constructive way to whoever, if there's a crisis going on. Our foreign minister, if I remember correctly, put it on his own Twitter account every time he had a call with another foreign minister. There are many, many foreign ministers around the world calling him, expressing concern, asking what's going on. And we gave a consistent message, I believe, to all of them," he added.
Trump has been claiming credit for playing a key role in brokering a ceasefire between India and Pakistan following Operation Sindoor and Pakistan's failed bid to launch an offensive.
Trump claimed that the understanding between India and Pakistan came through trade talks.
"If you take a look at what we just did with Pakistan and India. We settled that whole issue, and I think I settled it through trade," Trump said.
Trump added, "And I said, ‘What are you guys doing?’ Somebody had to be the last one to shoot. But the shooting was getting worse and worse, bigger and bigger, deeper and deeper into the countries. And we spoke to them, and I think we, you know, I hate to say we got it settled, and then two days later, something happens, and they say it's Trump's fault."
The recent pause in hostilities followed India's 'Operation Sindoor', launched in response to the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, which killed 26 civilians. The operation targeted nine terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), leading to clashes, including Pakistan's drone attempts on Indian cities near the border and shelling along the Line of Control (LoC).
Earlier, before India officially announced any agreement on stopping military action, Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social, saying, "After a long night of talks mediated by the United States, I am pleased to announce that India and Pakistan have agreed to a FULL AND IMMEDIATE CEASEFIRE. Congratulations to both countries on using common sense and great intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
Meanwhile, the all-party delegation, led by Tharoor, is going to the US as part of New Delhi's global outreach to highlight its new approach towards terrorism sponsored by Pakistan and to explain the rationale behind Operation Sindoor, which targeted terrorist infrastructure in territories controlled by Islamabad.
The Tharoor-led delegation will also travel to Guyana, Colombia, Panama, Brazil.
This delegation comprises Shambhavi (LJP-RV), Sarfaraz Ahmed (JMM), GM Harish Balayogi (TDP), Shashank Mani Tripathi (BJP), Bhubaneshwar Kalita (BJP), Milind Deora (Shiv Sena), Tejasvi Surya (BJP), and former diplomat Taranjit Sandhu.
Tharoor, who is set to lead an all-party MPs delegation in the US, said that the government updated world leaders, including foreign ministers of various countries, about India's action against Pakistan.
"You're aware of our government's stand very clearly. During any crisis, there's always contact with those countries that call and reach out. We have taken the same line everywhere. There's been no formal process of mediation, either requested or conducted. You call me, I tell you what I'm doing and why I'm doing it, and that's it. Then if you want to go and repeat that to somebody else and they take certain consequences as a result of that, is that called mediation? I don't think so. Not in my vocabulary," Tharoor said.
"But in any case, we are always a country that talks in a very constructive way to whoever, if there's a crisis going on. Our foreign minister, if I remember correctly, put it on his own Twitter account every time he had a call with another foreign minister. There are many, many foreign ministers around the world calling him, expressing concern, asking what's going on. And we gave a consistent message, I believe, to all of them," he added.
Trump has been claiming credit for playing a key role in brokering a ceasefire between India and Pakistan following Operation Sindoor and Pakistan's failed bid to launch an offensive.
Trump claimed that the understanding between India and Pakistan came through trade talks.
"If you take a look at what we just did with Pakistan and India. We settled that whole issue, and I think I settled it through trade," Trump said.
Trump added, "And I said, ‘What are you guys doing?’ Somebody had to be the last one to shoot. But the shooting was getting worse and worse, bigger and bigger, deeper and deeper into the countries. And we spoke to them, and I think we, you know, I hate to say we got it settled, and then two days later, something happens, and they say it's Trump's fault."
The recent pause in hostilities followed India's 'Operation Sindoor', launched in response to the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, which killed 26 civilians. The operation targeted nine terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), leading to clashes, including Pakistan's drone attempts on Indian cities near the border and shelling along the Line of Control (LoC).
Earlier, before India officially announced any agreement on stopping military action, Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social, saying, "After a long night of talks mediated by the United States, I am pleased to announce that India and Pakistan have agreed to a FULL AND IMMEDIATE CEASEFIRE. Congratulations to both countries on using common sense and great intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
Meanwhile, the all-party delegation, led by Tharoor, is going to the US as part of New Delhi's global outreach to highlight its new approach towards terrorism sponsored by Pakistan and to explain the rationale behind Operation Sindoor, which targeted terrorist infrastructure in territories controlled by Islamabad.
The Tharoor-led delegation will also travel to Guyana, Colombia, Panama, Brazil.
This delegation comprises Shambhavi (LJP-RV), Sarfaraz Ahmed (JMM), GM Harish Balayogi (TDP), Shashank Mani Tripathi (BJP), Bhubaneshwar Kalita (BJP), Milind Deora (Shiv Sena), Tejasvi Surya (BJP), and former diplomat Taranjit Sandhu.
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