'Pakistan is in trouble': US expert flags shift as Trump admin offers full support to India after Pahalgam
JD Vance called Prime Minister Modi and said US is ready to provide all assistance in the joint fight against terrorism
- Apr 23, 2025,
- Updated Apr 23, 2025 10:59 PM IST
"Pakistan is in trouble." That's how Derek J Grossman, national security and Indo-Pacific analyst, summed up the dramatic shift in Washington's posture toward Islamabad after the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people, most of them tourists.
Comparing responses under the two Trump administrations, Grossman wrote: "In 2019, Trump 1 offered to help deescalate India-Pakistan crisis post-Pulwama terrorist attack. Now? Trump 2 via VP Vance tells Modi that US is ready to provide all assistance in joint fight against terrorism. Quite the change in tone and pledge. Pakistan is in trouble."
MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal informed that US Vice President JD Vance, who is in India, called Prime Minister Narendra Modi and strongly condemned the dastardly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir. "He conveyed his deepest condolences on the loss of lives and reiterated that the United States stands with the people of India in this difficult hour. He expressed that the United States is ready to provide all assistance in the joint fight against terrorism."
The Prime Minister, who cut short a state visit to Saudi Arabia to return to Delhi, thanked Vice President Vance and President Donald Trump for their messages of support and solidarity.
Meanwhile, the Centre has responded to the Pahalgam massacre with a series of swift diplomatic and strategic measures. Following a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), chaired by Prime Minister Modi, the government announced five key actions targeting Pakistan.
The Indus Waters Treaty has been suspended with immediate effect until Pakistan “credibly and irrevocably abjures” cross-border terrorism.
The Attari integrated checkpost has been closed. Individuals with valid endorsements may return via Attari until May 1, 2025.
Pakistani nationals on SAARC or SPES visas have been asked to leave India within 48 hours. All previously issued visas under these schemes are deemed cancelled.
Pakistani Defence, Military, Naval, and Air Advisors in the High Commission in New Delhi have been declared persona non grata and given one week to exit.
India will withdraw its own military advisors from the High Commission in Islamabad. These posts are now annulled.
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misry stated, “The CCS reviewed the overall security situation and directed all forces to maintain high vigil. It resolved that perpetrators of this attack will be brought to justice and their sponsors held to account. As with the recent extradition of Tahawwur Rana, India will be unrelenting in the pursuit of those who have committed acts of terror or conspired to make them possible.”
The terror strike occurred in Baisaran Valley, a tourist spot near Pahalgam, in south Kashmir's Anantnag district. Among the deceased were tourists from West Bengal, the UAE, and Nepal. It is the worst terror attack on civilians in the region since the 2019 Pulwama bombing.
"Pakistan is in trouble." That's how Derek J Grossman, national security and Indo-Pacific analyst, summed up the dramatic shift in Washington's posture toward Islamabad after the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people, most of them tourists.
Comparing responses under the two Trump administrations, Grossman wrote: "In 2019, Trump 1 offered to help deescalate India-Pakistan crisis post-Pulwama terrorist attack. Now? Trump 2 via VP Vance tells Modi that US is ready to provide all assistance in joint fight against terrorism. Quite the change in tone and pledge. Pakistan is in trouble."
MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal informed that US Vice President JD Vance, who is in India, called Prime Minister Narendra Modi and strongly condemned the dastardly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir. "He conveyed his deepest condolences on the loss of lives and reiterated that the United States stands with the people of India in this difficult hour. He expressed that the United States is ready to provide all assistance in the joint fight against terrorism."
The Prime Minister, who cut short a state visit to Saudi Arabia to return to Delhi, thanked Vice President Vance and President Donald Trump for their messages of support and solidarity.
Meanwhile, the Centre has responded to the Pahalgam massacre with a series of swift diplomatic and strategic measures. Following a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), chaired by Prime Minister Modi, the government announced five key actions targeting Pakistan.
The Indus Waters Treaty has been suspended with immediate effect until Pakistan “credibly and irrevocably abjures” cross-border terrorism.
The Attari integrated checkpost has been closed. Individuals with valid endorsements may return via Attari until May 1, 2025.
Pakistani nationals on SAARC or SPES visas have been asked to leave India within 48 hours. All previously issued visas under these schemes are deemed cancelled.
Pakistani Defence, Military, Naval, and Air Advisors in the High Commission in New Delhi have been declared persona non grata and given one week to exit.
India will withdraw its own military advisors from the High Commission in Islamabad. These posts are now annulled.
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misry stated, “The CCS reviewed the overall security situation and directed all forces to maintain high vigil. It resolved that perpetrators of this attack will be brought to justice and their sponsors held to account. As with the recent extradition of Tahawwur Rana, India will be unrelenting in the pursuit of those who have committed acts of terror or conspired to make them possible.”
The terror strike occurred in Baisaran Valley, a tourist spot near Pahalgam, in south Kashmir's Anantnag district. Among the deceased were tourists from West Bengal, the UAE, and Nepal. It is the worst terror attack on civilians in the region since the 2019 Pulwama bombing.