Washington: Senior Indian parliamentarian and head of a diplomatic outreach delegation, Shashi Tharoor, has firmly stated that the Indian government should not engage in dialogue with Pakistan until credible action is taken to dismantle terrorist training camps on its soil. He also dismissed the idea of U.S. mediation, saying it creates a false sense of parity between the two nations.
Tharoor, who is leading an international mission to present India’s perspective following last month’s military confrontation with Pakistan, said any suggestion of third-party mediation is “unacceptable,” as it implies equal standing between a country plagued by terrorism and the victim of such acts.
“There is no equivalence between terrorists and their victims,” Tharoor said in an interview with Bloomberg on Friday in Washington. “This is a matter between Pakistanis and us.”
Last month, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire between India and Pakistan via his social media platform, claiming credit for defusing the military standoff. Trump asserted that the U.S. had used trade as a “bargaining chip” to end the conflict.
India, however, has denied that the ceasefire resulted from American intervention. In contrast, Pakistan welcomed U.S. involvement and has encouraged third-party mediation.
Tharoor's delegation has met with U.S. Vice President JD Vance, several lawmakers, State Department officials, and representatives of prominent Washington think tanks. According to Tharoor, these meetings yielded “messages of full solidarity” with India.
Pakistan has also dispatched its own delegations to counter India’s narrative. The recent wave of diplomatic engagement follows weeks of heightened tensions, including drone and air strikes, which brought the two nuclear-armed neighbors close to a full-scale war. A ceasefire was reached on May 10.
The latest tensions date back to April 22, when a terrorist attack in Baisaran, a tourist spot in India-administered Pahalgam, resulted in the deaths of 26 tourists. India blamed Pakistan for the attack, while Pakistan denied involvement and called for an impartial investigation.
Tharoor reiterated India’s position during his interview: “We will not engage with Pakistan until they demonstrate credible steps to dismantle the infrastructure of terrorism.” He added pointedly, “Would you negotiate with someone holding a gun to your head?”
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had earlier warned that India would not hesitate to use force again against terrorist camps in Pakistan, calling this posture the new “normal.”
Pakistan, on the other hand, has categorically denied the existence of terrorist camps on its territory or support for terrorism, additionally Pakistan has accused Indian of sponsoring terrorism in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa through BLA and TTP.
Referring to the October 7 incident that triggered the recent escalation, Tharoor emphasized, “This is India versus terrorism. That was our message.”
In a separate interview with Bloomberg earlier this week, Pakistan’s envoy to the U.S., Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, warned that India's actions during the conflict had effectively lowered the threshold for future military escalation between the two countries. He also expressed concern over India’s use of a missile that could potentially carry a nuclear warhead, calling it a dangerous escalation.
