India will deal with Pakistan purely bilaterally, there should be no confusion in any quarter in that regard: S Jaishankar

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday said that India will deal with Pakistan purely bilaterally, adding that India has zero-tolerance for terrorism and it will never give in to nuclear blackmail.

"India will deal with Pakistan purely bilaterally, there should be no confusion in any quarter in that regard," Jaishankar said during a press conference in Germany. The minister also said that Germany understood that every nation has right to defend itself against terrorism.

In a post on X, Jaishankar said he met German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul and "exchanged views on issues from our immediate neighborhood to global concerns and challenges".



Jaishankar is in Berlin in the concluding leg of his three-nation tour to the Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany.

'India-Pak ceasefire not via international mediation'

Earlier, Jaishankar had stated that the ceasefire between India and Pakistan was achieved through direct military communication between the two countries, not via international mediation.

“The cessation of firing and military action was something which was negotiated directly between India and Pakistan,” Jaishankar said in an interview with Dutch broadcaster NOS. “We made one thing very clear to everybody who spoke to us, not just the United States, but to everyone, saying look, if the Pakistani want to stop the firing, they need to tell us. We need to hear it from them, their general has to call our general and say this, and that is what happened.”

On 10 May, a hotline call from the Pakistani military signalled their intent to stop hostilities. India responded accordingly.

He acknowledged that while countries like the US, Gulf nations, and others expressed concern and spoke to both sides, the final agreement to end hostilities was made between India and Pakistan alone.

Operation Sindoor and the April 22 attack

Tensions flared after a terror attack on 22 April in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, claimed 26 civilian lives. In response, India launched 'Operation Sindoor' in the early hours of 7 May. The operation targeted nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir. According to Indian military sources, over 100 militants linked to groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Hizbul Mujahideen were killed.

Pakistan retaliated with shelling along the Line of Control and attempted drone incursions. India answered with strikes on radar systems, airfields, and communication centres in Pakistan. These escalations culminated in India launching a decisive air campaign on 10 May, striking eight Pakistani airbases.

No external broker, despite US claims

While India and Pakistan reached an understanding to end hostilities on 10 May, former US President Donald Trump claimed that he brokered the ceasefire.

"If you take a look at what we just did with Pakistan and India, we settled that whole thing, and I think I settled it through trade. We’re doing a big deal with India. We’re doing a big deal with Pakistan,” Trump said at a White House meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.

Earlier, Trump had posted on his platform, Truth Social: “After a long night of talks mediated by the United States, I am pleased to announce that India and Pakistan have agreed to a FULL AND IMMEDIATE CEASEFIRE. Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence.”

India rebutted the claims. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) clarified that the ceasefire understanding was strictly bilateral.

“Our longstanding national position is that any issues pertaining to the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir have to be addressed by India and Pakistan bilaterally. That stated policy has not changed,” the MEA said.

It also noted that “the issue of trade did not come up in any discussions between Indian and U.S. leaders” from the start of Operation Sindoor to the ceasefire on 10 May.