India and Pakistan step back from brink of war, but trade accusations of ceasefire violations
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ISLAMABAD/NEW DELHI: The ceasefire between India and Pakistan continued on Sunday (May 11) amid accusations of truce violations from both sides.
Artillery fire and attack drones were witnessed in Jammu and Kashmir, the centre of much of the fighting, hours after US President Donald Trump announced that the nuclear-armed neighbours had stepped back from the brink of full-blown war.
Blasts from air-defence systems also boomed in cities under blackout, similar to the previous evening, according to authorities, residents and Reuters witnesses.
Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri told reporters that Pakistan had violated the understanding arrived at by the two countries on Saturday, and that the Indian armed forces had been instructed to "deal strongly" with any repetition.
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"We call upon Pakistan to take appropriate steps to address these violations and deal with the situation with seriousness and responsibility," Misri told a media briefing.
In response, the foreign ministry of Pakistan said the country was committed to the ceasefire and blamed India for the violations.
"Notwithstanding the violations being committed by India in some areas, our forces are handling the situation with responsibility and restraint," it said.
The ministry also called on troops on the ground to exercise restraint and said that any issues in the implementation of the ceasefire should be addressed through communication at appropriate levels.
Pakistan's military spokesperson did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The fighting has been the worst between the old South Asian enemies in nearly three decades and threatened to erupt into a full-scale war in one of the world's most volatile and densely populated regions.
There were brief fears that nuclear arsenals might come into play as Pakistan's military said a top body overseeing its nuclear weapons would meet.
But the defence minister said no such meeting was scheduled, hours after a night of heavy fighting in which the two countries targeted each other’s military bases and the combined civilian death toll rose to 66.
"Pakistan and India have agreed to a ceasefire with immediate effect," Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar posted on X. "Pakistan has always strived for peace and security in the region, without compromising on its sovereignty and territorial integrity!"
Misri had earlier said the chiefs of the two countries' military operations had spoken to each other and agreed that all fighting would stop at 5pm local time (1130 GMT).
US President Donald Trump posted: "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."
Late Saturday, Trump posted again on Truth Social, praising the leaders of India and Pakistan for understanding that "it was time to stop the current aggression", and also pledging to increase trade "substantially" with both nations.
The US president also said he would work with New Delhi and Islamabad to "see if, after a 'thousand years,' a solution can be arrived at concerning Kashmir".
HOTLINES AND DIPLOMACY
Dar told the broadcaster Geo News that military channels and hotlines between India and Pakistan had been activated, and three dozen countries had helped to facilitate the agreement.
The conflict was touched off by an attack last month in the Indian-administered side of Kashmir that killed 26 tourists, mostly Hindu men, which Delhi blamed on Islamabad.
India accused the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba - a UN-designated terrorist organisation - of carrying out the attack, but Islamabad has denied any involvement and called for an independent probe.
Days of cross-border fire, shelling and drone and missile attacks followed.
Despite the truce, two Indian government sources told Reuters that the punitive measures announced by India and reciprocated by Pakistan, such as trade suspension and visa cancellations, would remain in place for now.
The sources also said the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, a critical water-sharing pact that India suspended after the Kashmir attack, would remain suspended.
The Indian foreign ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that he and Vice President JD Vance had engaged with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pakistan's Sharif, Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Pakistan's army chief Asim Munir, and the two national security advisers over the course of 48 hours.
TALKS TO FOLLOW AT NEUTRAL VENUE
In a post on X, Rubio commended Modi and Sharif on the agreement, which he said included not only an immediate ceasefire but also the start of talks on "a broad set of issues at a neutral site".
In a subsequent address to the nation, Pakistan Prime Minister Mohammad Shehbaz Sharif said Trump "played a sincere" role in promoting the ceasefire.
He also said on X that Pakistan - which has long sought international mediation in Kashmir - "appreciates" the US intervention.
India has consistently opposed mediation, however, and observers were sceptical of the truce.
"The ceasefire was cobbled together hastily, and at a moment when tensions were at their highest," US-based South Asia analyst Michael Kugelman wrote on X after the claims of violations.
"India appears to have interpreted the deal differently than did the US and Pakistan, and it's likely not keen on the broader talks it calls for. Upholding it will pose challenges," he warned.
News of the ceasefire was greeted with relief on both sides of the border and Pakistan's airport authority said its airspace had been fully reopened.
India and Pakistan have been locked in a dispute over Kashmir ever since they were born at the end of British colonial rule in 1947. Hindu-majority India and Muslim Pakistan both rule part of Kashmir but claim it in full.
They have gone to war three times, including twice over Kashmir, alongside numerous smaller outbreaks of fighting.
India blames Pakistan for an insurgency in its part of Kashmir that began in 1989 and has killed tens of thousands. It also blames Pakistani Islamist militant groups for attacks elsewhere in India.
Pakistan rejects both charges. It says it provides only moral, political and diplomatic support to Kashmiri separatists.
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