‘President Trump, Secretary Rubio have made clear’: US says it stands with India; UN urges New Delhi, Islamabad to exercise restraint 

The United States has said it stands with India and condemns all acts of terrorism, while the United Nations urged both India and Pakistan to exercise maximum restraint. 

“As President (Donald) Trump and Secretary (Marco) Rubio have made clear, the United States stands with India, strongly condemns all acts of terrorism," State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce said Thursday, further adding, “We pray for the lives of those lost and for the recovery of the injured and call for the perpetrators of this heinous act to be brought to justice.” 

When asked if the US sees Pakistan as potentially being behind the Pahalgam attack and if Washington is playing a part in mediating between the two sides, Bruce said they would not be making any comments at this time.

"What I can tell you is, of course, as we all know, it’s a rapidly changing situation and we are monitoring it closely, as you might imagine. And we, of course, are not now taking a position on the status of Kashmir or of Jammu either, so that’s really going to be the extent of what I can say today.”

Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, urging both the nations to exercise restraint to not further escalate matters, stated that they are following the situation “very closely and with very great concern”. 

Stephane Dujarric, Spokesman for the Secretary-General, responding to a question on whether Guterres had any contact with New Delhi and Islamabad, said, “We were very clear in our condemnation of the terror attack that occurred in Jammu and Kashmir, on the 22nd, two days ago, which killed a large number of civilians.”

"Any issues between Pakistan and India, we believe can be and should be resolved peacefully, through meaningful, mutual engagement,” Dujarric said.

Twenty-six civilians, mostly holidayers, were killed in an attack where terrorists opened fire at Pahalgam’s Baisaran meadow, which is known as mini-Switzerland, and is a popular attraction for tourists. Following this, India downgraded diplomatic ties with Pakistan, expelled Pakistani military attaches, suspended the Indus Water Treaty of 1960, and shut down the Attari land-transit post. 

Pakistan said it “shall exercise the right to hold all bilateral agreements with India, including but not limited to the Simla Agreement, in abeyance.” It also closed off its airspace for Indian flights.