India's position on Jammu and Kashmir - the return of territory illegally occupied by Pakistan - has not changed, the External Affairs Ministry said Tuesday, underlining what Prime Minister Narendra Modi said 24 hours earlier and what government sources told NDTV a day before that.
India is also determined this issue be resolved bilaterally, the ministry said, despite Pakistan having solicited mediation in the past and United States President Donald Trump having offered it twice.
In a regular briefing this evening, ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told reporters India has a "long-standing national position (on J&K) ... that issues pertaining to the Union Territory have to be addressed by India and Pakistan bilaterally". This, Mr Jaiswal said, has not changed.
"And, as you are aware, the outstanding matter is the vacation of illegally occupied territory by Pakistan," he said, in response to a question about Trump's offer to broker a resolution.
PM's Message On Kashmir
On Monday night, in his first address to the nation since Operation Sindoor - India's military response to the Pahalgam attack - the Prime Minister said there could be no talks over Kashmir, except over dismantling Pak's terrorist infrastructure and returning Pak-occupied Kashmir.
Reiterating what his predecessors have said, he said, "Terror and talks can't go together... terror and trade can't happen together... terror and water can't flow together." The latter jab referred to the suspended Indus Waters Treaty and reports Pak wanted it re-activated to agree to the ceasefire.
READ | Future Talks With Pakistan Only On PoK, Terror: PM Modi
"If we ever talk to Pakistan, it will be on terror and PoK only," the PM said.
The Prime Minister has also put Pakistan and Pak-supported terrorists on notice and underscored the paradigm shift in India's doctrine on terrorism that he announced late last night.
READ | "If There's Another Attack, India Will Respond Emphatically": PM
He warned terrorists India would launch formidable counterattacks if faced with a repeat of Pahalgam, where 26 people, mostly civilians, were killed by a proxy of the Pak-based Lashkar terrorist group.
India's Unchanging Kashmir Stance
Over the years India has made its Kashmir position clear - that there can be no discussion with Pakistan, except to return stolen territory, and such talks must be bilateral.
However, equally over the years, there have been mediation offers and talk of a third party to help settle a fractious dispute that leaves two nuclear powers perpetually on the brink of war.
Such an offer was made by Trump in his first term and repeated 48 hours earlier.
The US President - who took credit for the ceasefire in a staccato social media post - declared he would "work with you both to see if, after a thousand years, a solution can be arrived at concerning Kashmir".
READ | "Will Work With You...": Donald Trump's Kashmir Offer To India, Pak
His offer was welcomed by Pak but, expectedly, rejected by India.
READ | "No Such Request": India Rejects Trump's Kashmir Mediation Claim
It was rejected in 2019 too; then Trump had sensationally claimed Prime Minister Modi had personally requested he mediate an end to the Kashmir issue. Mr Jaiswal then stressed that no such request had been made and that all issues with Pak must be discussed bilaterally.
That stern reply prompted the US government to backtrack; the State Department declared Kashmir a bilateral issue concerning Islamabad and New Delhi and that Washington is only "ready to assist".
NDTV is now available on WhatsApp channels. Click on the link to get all the latest updates from NDTV on your chat.
