In a pointed rebuttal, senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has dismissed Rahul Gandhi’s assertion that former U.S. President Donald Trump played a mediating role in the recent ceasefire between India and Pakistan. Tharoor emphasized that no formal mediation was requested or conducted by any third party, including the United States.
Addressing the media ahead of his visit to the United States, Tharoor questioned the legitimacy of Trump’s claim, stating, “You call me, I tell you what I’m doing and why I’m doing it, and that’s it. Then if you want to go and repeat that to somebody else and they take certain consequences as a result of that, is that called mediation? I don’t think so. Not in my vocabulary.”
Tharoor’s remarks come in response to Rahul Gandhi’s criticism of the Modi government’s handling of the ceasefire, where Gandhi suggested that Trump had coerced India into the agreement through trade threats. Rahul demanded transparency from Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding the nature of discussions with the U.S. administration.
However, Tharoor maintained that the ceasefire was a bilateral decision between India and Pakistan, initiated through direct communication between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) of both countries. He highlighted that while international leaders were informed of India’s actions, these interactions did not constitute mediation.
Tharoor’s stance aligns with the official position of the Indian government, which has consistently denied any third-party involvement in the ceasefire agreement. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar reiterated that the ceasefire was a result of direct talks between India and Pakistan, with no external mediation.
This divergence in views within the Congress party underscores internal disagreements on foreign policy approaches and national interest.
