Shashi Tharoor rebuffs Trump’s ‘mediation’ claim in India-Pakistan ceasefire

The US president had claimed credit for mediating the recent ceasefire between the nuclear-armed neighbours

Congress MP and former diplomat Shashi Tharoor has downplayed US President Donald Trump's claim of mediating the recent ceasefire between India and Pakistan, calling it a mischaracterisation of diplomatic engagement.

Speaking to Indian broadcaster NDTV on Sunday, Tharoor said: "I think that's a very unfortunate way of proceeding. I have certainly never seen anything like that in international diplomacy."

His remarks came after Trump posted on his platform, Truth Social, claiming the US had mediated the ceasefire and congratulating both countries for using “common sense and great intelligence”.

Shortly after Trump’s post, both India and Pakistan formally announced the ceasefire.

Tharoor, who served at the United Nations, stressed that while foreign ministers from both sides were in touch with several countries during the conflict, including the US, those conversations should not be seen as requests for mediation.

"Let me be blunt about it...[External Affairs Minister] Jaishankar spoke to [US] Secretary Rubio. Then he [Rubio] spoke with the foreign minister of Pakistan. These kinds of contacts were going on throughout these three or four days of the conflict. But that doesn't mean that India was requesting mediation," he told NDTV.

Tharoor described the US’s role as “constructive” diplomacy rather than formal mediation.

"That's not mediation. That is the Americans trying to play a constructive role. If they or any other country did that, [that's] great. Frankly, the US was not the only country. Jaishankar has been speaking to the foreign ministers of the UAE, UK, or France [as well]."

Noting that other countries often relay information between parties during a conflict, he added: "That is not the same as Trump claiming credit for mediation because India would have never sought mediation, doesn't mean mediation, and I think would never accept the idea that we have in any way accepted foreign mediation in a conflict that we are perfectly capable of handling ourselves."

While Trump later praised the "powerful leadership" of both countries for agreeing to a ceasefire and expressed a desire to help resolve the Kashmir issue, India has consistently opposed third-party involvement, maintaining that Kashmir is an internal matter.