NEW DELHI — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called senior officials in India and Pakistan in an effort to defuse the crisis that followed last week's deadly attack in Kashmir, the State Department said.
Rubio urged Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar to de-escalate tensions on Wednesday.
India has vowed to punish Pakistan after accusing it of backing the attack, which Islamabad denies. The nuclear-armed rivals have since expelled each other's diplomats and citizens, ordered the border shut and closed their airspace to each other. New Delhi has suspended a crucial water-sharing treaty with Islamabad.
Soldiers on each side have also exchanged fire along their de facto border, driving tensions between India and Pakistan to their highest point in recent years.
The region of Kashmir is split between India and Pakistan and claimed by both in its entirety. The two countries have fought two wars and one limited conflict over the Himalayan territory.
U.S. State Department's Spokesperson Tammy Bruce said Rubio in his call with Jaishankar expressed sorrow over last week's massacre. He also reaffirmed the U.S.'s "commitment to cooperation with India against terrorism,'' Bruce said.
Jaishankar on Thursday said he discussed the last week's massacre in Indian-controlled Kashmir's Pahalgam, in which 26 tourists, mostly Hindu men, were killed, with Rubio, adding that ''perpetrators, backers and planners'' of the attack ''must be brought to justice.''
Rubio also spoke to Sharif on Wednesday evening and ''emphasized the need for both sides to continue working together for peace and stability in South Asia,'' according to a Pakistani statement. It said Sharif rejected the Indian allegations and ''urged the U.S. to impress upon India to dial down the rhetoric and act responsibly.''
