India on Tuesday doubled down on its dismissal of US President Donald Trump’s remarks that he had been asked by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to mediate on the Kashmir dispute, with external affairs minister S Jaishankar saying no such request was made.
Jaishankar’s comments in both houses of Parliament came in the wake of Washington rolling back Trump’s unexpected offer to mediate, with the acting assistant secretary of state for South Asian affairs, Alice Wells, saying Kashmir should be tackled bilaterally by India and Pakistan though the US is “ready to assist”.
Trump’s remarks during a news conference with Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan in Washington on Monday – he said Modi asked him two weeks ago to mediate in the Kashmir dispute and that he was willing to arbitrate between India and Pakistan – triggered a storm in New Delhi, which has consistently ruled out third party mediation on all outstanding issues with Islamabad. The remarks were dismissed hours later by the external affairs ministry.
Addressing both houses of Parliament on Tuesday, Jaishankar said: “Yesterday evening...we heard remarks by President Donald Trump in a meeting with Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan...that he is ready to mediate, if requested by India and Pakistan, on the Kashmir issue.
{{/usCountry}}Addressing both houses of Parliament on Tuesday, Jaishankar said: “Yesterday evening...we heard remarks by President Donald Trump in a meeting with Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan...that he is ready to mediate, if requested by India and Pakistan, on the Kashmir issue.
{{/usCountry}}“I would like to categorically assure the House that no such request has been made by the prime minister to the US president...I would...also reiterate that it has been India’s consistent position that all outstanding issues with Pakistan are discussed only bilaterally.”
Jaishankar said an end to cross-border terrorism is an essential requirement for “any engagement with Pakistan”. He added, “Let me conclude by emphasising that the Simla Agreement and the Lahore Declaration provide the basis to resolve all issues between India and Pakistan bilaterally.”
Modi and Trump last met on the margins of the G20 Summit in Osaka on June 28. People familiar with developments said the US side had checked its records of that meeting and there was “no mention of Kashmir” in the discussions.
Trump’s daughter, Ivanka Trump, who accompanied the US President to Osaka said at the time: “We are here at the G20 in Osaka and Prime Minister Modi and Prime Minister Abe just concluded a meeting with the President talking about 5G technology, particularly with focus on its security implication.”
She also added that at “a subsequent productive conversation, a one-on-one meeting between the President and Prime Minister Modi, ... the same issues were covered, of course 5G, as well as trade relationship between the United States and India, a critical trading partner, a critical security partner and a critical ally. So it was a productive discussion, everything from Iran to national security was covered by the President and the US delegation with their Indian counterparts.”
In a tweet by the US Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, Alice Wells was quoted as saying: “While Kashmir is a bilateral issue for both parties to discuss, the Trump administration welcomes #Pakistan and #India sitting down and the United States stands ready to assist.”
The US also sternly reminded Pakistan of its responsibility in creating grounds for improved ties with India, with a US state department spokesperson saying: “We believe the foundation for any successful dialogue between India and Pakistan is based on Pakistan taking sustained and irreversible steps against militants and terrorists on its territory.”
These were significant departures from the position taken by Trump, who appeared to have reversed decades of US policy.
There was no mention of Trump’s offer in the three-paragraph readout of the president’s luncheon meeting with Khan shortly after their Oval Office remarks. The readout was focussed on counterterror and Afghanistan and said: “The President and Prime Minister discussed the threat that terrorism presents to regional stability and discussed ways in which Pakistan can support a peaceful resolution to the conflict in Afghanistan.
Trump had acknowledged “initial steps” Pakistan had taken to advance the Afghan peace process and “affirmed Prime Minister Khan’s stated commitment to take action against militants and terrorists”.
Despite Jaishankar’s statement in Parliament, opposition parties, led by the Congress, demanded the prime minister should come to both houses and offer a clarification. Congress leader, Rahul Gandhi, said that if what Trump had stated was true, Modi had betrayed India’s interests.
Gandhi said a “weak” denial by the external affairs ministry wasn’t enough and Modi must tell the country what transpired in his meeting with Trump. Opposition MPs disrupted proceedings in the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha over the issue.
During Zero Hour, Congress leader, Manish Tewari, and AIADMK’s TR Baalu sought a clarification from the prime minister. When Jaishankar rose to speak in the Lok Sabha, the opposition walked out.
Flanked by opposition leaders such as CPI’s D Raja, NCP’s Majeed Menon and DMK’s Tiruchi Siva, SP’s Ramgopal Yadav and AAP’s Sanjay Singh, Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said his party was ready to believe Modi’s side of the story but wanted him to clarify the matter in Parliament.
However, Congress leader and former minister of state for external affairs, Shashi Tharoor, said in a tweet Trump had probably spoken erroneously. “I honestly don’t think Trump has the slightest idea of what he’s talking about. He has either not been briefed or not understood what Modi was saying or what India’s position is on 3rd-party mediation,” he tweeted on Monday night.
Pakistan’s foreign minister, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, continued to insist that Trump had offered to mediate on the Kashmir issue. “This is a new chapter in Pakistan-US relations. PM @ImranKhanPTI had an exceptional meeting with Pres Trump. Not only did @POTUS acknowledge Pak’s crucial role in Afg peace process but also offered to facilitate talks b/w Pakistan & India on the Kashmir dispute,” he tweeted.
Qureshi also told a news conference in Washington that Khan’s talks with Trump had allowed Pakistan to present its point of view and reduce the trust deficit in ties. “I am not saying this sitting has completely changed the way things were for us. I am saying a door that was completely shut for us, a possibility has been created for that door to be opened,” he said.