Chinese FM Wang speaks to NSA Doval, calls for lasting ceasefire with Pakistan

Beijing: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke to India's National Security Advisory (NSA) Ajit Doval and expressed hope that New Delhi and Islamabad would address their differences through dialogue and achieve a lasting ceasefire.

During their conversation, Doval told Wang that war was not India's choice but India needed to take counter-terrorism action after the Pahalgam attack, state-run Xinhua news agency reported in separate dispatches.

Wang also condemned the April 22 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam, which had cross-border linkages and triggered the worst fighting between India and Pakistan in years.

Wang also spoke to Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar, Xinhua's reports said.

Hostilities soared between India and Pakistan after the Indian military hit terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) on May 7 in response to the Pahalgam attack, which claimed 26 lives.

The two nuclear-armed neighbours on May 10 reached an understanding to stop all firings and military actions on land, air and sea with immediate effect after four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes.

In his talks with Doval, Wang expressed hope that India and Pakistan would remain calm and restrained, properly handle differences through dialogue and consultation, and avoid escalating the situation, according to Xinhua's reports.

Wang said China supports and expects India and Pakistan to achieve a comprehensive and lasting ceasefire through consultation, which is in the fundamental interest of the two countries and meets the common aspiration of the international community.

He said China condemns the terrorist attack in Pahalgam and opposes all forms of terrorism.

Noting that the world is undergoing both transformation and upheaval, Wang said peace and stability in Asia are hard-won and deserve to be cherished. India and Pakistan are neighbours that cannot be moved away and they are both neighbours of China, he said.

Doval told Wang that the Pahalgam attack resulted in serious casualties for the Indian side and that India needed to take counter-terrorism actions.

War is not the choice of the Indian side and is not in the interest of either side, Doval underlined, adding that both India and Pakistan will be committed to the ceasefire and look forward to restoring regional peace and stability as soon as possible, the reports said.

In his conversation with Dar, the reports stated, Wang said that as a neighbour of both Pakistan and India, China is concerned about the conflict between the two.

He said China believes that Pakistan will make decisions in line with its fundamental and long-term interests.

Dar told Wang that Pakistan is willing to achieve a ceasefire with India but will respond to any acts that violate its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Noting that Pakistan stands on the frontline of the international fight against terrorism, Wang said China supports its continued firm counterterrorism efforts, the Xinhua reports said.

Before India and Pakistan agreed to the ceasefire, China on Saturday strongly urged the two countries to exercise calm and restraint, and return to the track of peaceful settlement.

China is closely following the ongoing situation between India and Pakistan, and is deeply concerned about the escalation, the Chinese foreign ministry said earlier in a statement.

"We strongly urge both sides to act in the larger interest of peace and stability, exercise calm and restraint, return to the track of political settlement through peaceful means, and refrain from any action that could further escalate tensions," the statement said.

This will be important for the fundamental interest of both India and Pakistan, and for a stable and peaceful region. This is also what the international community hopes to see. China is willing to continue to play a constructive role to this end, it said.