How countries reacted to rising tensions between India, Pakistan

The international community has been urging both India and Pakistan to exercise restraint after tensions escalated in the past few days. Here's a look at who said what to the two countries during heightened tensions

President Donald Trump voiced confidence that the hostilities between India and Pakistan would end soon, saying he has some "reasonably decent" news with the US involved in trying to help reduce tensions between the two neighbours.  In his opening statement at a press conference at the end of his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Trump said the US has some "reasonably attractive news" from Pakistan and India. "We have been involved in trying to help them (India and Pakistan) stop and we have some reasonably decent news," he told the reporters. "I think hopefully that (tensions) could be coming to an end, it has been going on for a long time," Trump said in his first comments since India and Pakistan both claimed to have shot down each other's fighter planes on Wednesday, with Pakistan capturing one Indian pilot.

Britain is deeply concerned over rising tensions between India and Pakistan, Prime Minister Theresa May said urging both the nuclear-armed nations to exercise restraint to avoid further escalation. Tensions between India and Pakistan rose after Pakistan claimed it shot down two Indian fighter jets over Pakistani air space and arrested a pilot. "The UK is deeply concerned about rising tensions between India and Pakistan and urgently calls for restraint on both sides to avoid further escalation. We are in regular contact with both countries, urging dialogue and diplomatic solutions to ensure regional stability," prime minister May said.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo earlier spoke to India's National Security Advisor Ajit Doval amidst tense ties between India and Pakistan in the aftermath of the Pulwama terror attack and New Delhi's air strike against JeM terror training camp in Balakot. Pompeo and Doval are understood to have discussed the situation in the region during the telephonic conversation on Wednesday, the Secretary of State's office confirmed.

EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini called on India and Pakistan to show the "utmost restraint" in their escalating confrontation as fears of a war loomed large between the nuclear-armed rivals.
"We expect both countries to now exercise utmost restraint and avoid any further escalation of the situation," Mogherini said in a statement after both countries said they had shot down each other's warplanes.

Nepal foreign minister Pradeep Kumar Gyawali has asked India and Pakistan to come together for dialogue and resolve the ongoing tussle between them. Two nuclear powers engaged in aerial engagements as Pakistan violated Indian airspace in response to a precise, non-military aerial attack on terror launch pads in its territory. Nepal, as the current SAARC Chair, said that it is concerned about the prevalent tensions between India and Pakistan in the wake of Pulwama terror attack.

Russia on Wednesday urged India and Pakistan to ''show restraint" as it expressed "serious concern" about the escalation of hostilities between the two countries. "We call on both sides to show restraint and step up efforts to resolve existing problems by political and diplomatic means," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia said in a statement. It expressed "serious concern" about the aggravation of the situation along the Line of Control and the outbreak of tensions between the two neighbours.

China called on India and Pakistan to exercise restraint amid the escalation of hostilities between the two countries and urged them to engage in dialogue to uphold the peace and stability in the region. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang's remarks came after Pakistan targeted military installations in India in response to Indian counter-terrorism in Balakot. "China's position is clear. As two important countries in South Asia we hope that the two countries can exercise restraint and engage in dialogue and take actions for the peace and stability in the region," he said.