The United States has urged India and Pakistan to keep open and direct lines of communication to sustain regional peace and stability. The Trump administration reasserted that it was willing to assist endeavors to continue the peace between the two countries.
"We urge both sides to have direct communication in order to keep regional stability," said Tommy Pigott, the U.S. State Department spokesperson, during a regular press briefing.
Pigott was thankful for the recent India-Pakistan ceasefire agreement between the two neighboring nations and commended Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for choosing dialogue over war. He commended their "strength, wisdom, and fortitude" in making such a choice.
During the briefing, Pigott reiterated that the United States' top priority regarding India-Pakistan relations is the continuation of the ceasefire and the need for continued bilateral dialogue.
Previously, when he was in Riyadh during the first leg of his three-country West Asia trip, President Donald Trump weighed in on the issue, stressing the way in which the lure of trade with the U.S. was used to persuade the two countries to end fighting.
Responding to a question about whether Secretary of State Marco Rubio secured any pledges from Pakistan regarding counter-terrorism efforts in discussions with Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Army Chief Asim Munir, Pigott refrained from commenting on diplomatic discussions. “I’m not going to talk about private diplomatic conversations,” he said. What I can say is to reiterate what we've been saying for a couple of days now is that we welcome the ceasefire agreement between India and Pakistan this weekend, and we congratulate both prime ministers for taking the path of peace. The President was very specific in terms of that. We also want to encourage direct dialogue between the parties.". That is something that we've also been unequivocal about as well.
Responding to a question regarding India's refusal of the U.S. offer to mediate, Pigott refused to speculate. "Well, I'm not going to speculate on that. What I can say is that we encourage direct communication. We have been clear on that. We continue to encourage direct communication. The President has been clear on that.". And the President, as I indicated, has also made clear in his praise of both prime ministers for taking the course of peace and the wisdom and courage it exhibits.
Pigott also declined to comment on questions regarding reported radiation leaks at Pakistani nuclear sites.
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