The White House sidestepped a direct response to a reporter's question regarding a shocking revelation made by a Pakistani minister, who admitted that Pakistan had been conducting secret operations on behalf of the United States and Western nations for three decades.
During a Tuesday press conference, US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce was asked about Defence Minister Khawaja Asif's statement. But Bruce opted not to provide a specific answer.
"The Secretary of State will speak with the foreign ministers of both countries. We're also monitoring the events across the board in that area, and we, as you know, are at a number of levels in touch with the governments of India and Pakistan," Bruce said.
She continued, "We, of course, are calling on everyone concerned to coordinate for a responsible solution. The world is watching this, but I have nothing else to say in that regard."
The furore was triggered by Asif's interview with Sky News, where he was asked about Pakistan's alleged role in financing and backing extremist forces. Responding thereto, he stated, "We have been performing this dirty job on behalf of the US for the last three decades, including the West and the United Kingdom."
Asif was fast to apologize over the policy, calling it a "mistake" and agreeing that Pakistan had "suffered because of that."
The comments came as tensions escalated after a deadly terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. The Resistance Front, an alleged offshoot of the banned outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba, claimed the attack. Being asked about the presence of the group in Pakistan, Asif denied any current presence.
"Lashkar-e-Taiba does not exist in Pakistan anymore. It has become extinct. If the mother body does not exist, then how is the splinter going to give birth here," he made it clear.
Following the deadly assault that killed 26 civilians, the Trump administration initiated outreach towards India and Pakistan to calm growing tensions. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will soon meet with the foreign ministers of both nations, Bruce stated. She acknowledged the gravity of the crisis and acknowledged that the US is appealing to both sides for restraint to prevent escalation.
"In terms of what's going on in Kashmir, India and Pakistan whom he (Secretary of State Marco Rubio) suggested we're negotiating with both sides and making, clearly, them stop further escalating the matter," Bruce said. "The secretary is looking to speak with Pakistan's and India's foreign ministers as early as today or tomorrow."
She continued to say that Secretary Rubio is calling on other global leaders to open diplomatic channels in a bid to broker negotiations between the two countries.
"He is calling on other national leaders, other foreign ministers, to do the same. So it is, once more, as I have indicated day by day, something is being done in this case. The secretary himself speaking directly with his counterparts in India and Pakistan."
The State Department testified that the US is having its conversations with these nations not merely on formal ministerial levels, but at several diplomacy levels.
Read also| Indian Student Missing in Canada for Three Days Found Dead
