Jaishankar Details Timeline of India-Pakistan Ceasefire and US Conversations: “Was in the Room’:

India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar recently clarified the true story behind the ceasefire between India and Pakistan following the intense clashes after the terror attack in Kashmir’s Pahalgam last April. Speaking from his personal experience in an interview with Newsweek in New York, he explained that the ceasefire wasn’t simply due to pressure from US President Donald Trump, as some have claimed.

Jaishankar shared that on the night of May 9, he was present when then US Vice-President JD Vance spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Vance warned that Pakistan was planning a major assault. But Modi remained unfazed and made it clear India would respond decisively. And that’s exactly what happened—the Pakistanis launched a massive attack that night, and India responded swiftly.

The following day, May 10, Jaishankar engaged with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who informed him that Pakistan was ready to talk. Later that afternoon, Pakistan’s military chief Major General Kashif Abdullah directly contacted his Indian counterpart Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai to request a ceasefire.

The assertion of President Trump's to mediate the ceasefire, Jaishankar was adamant about keeping diplomacy and trade talks apart. He clarified that India did not permit trade to affect its position on security issues and that trade negotiations and diplomatic initiatives follow different paths.

Jaishankar emphasised that India no longer makes a distinction between terrorist organisations and their backers, demonstrating that security choices are made based on values rather than commercial pressures. However, Trump asserted, by threatening to halt trade agreements unless India and Pakistan stopped fighting, he averted a nuclear conflict and millions of deaths.