India refused third party role: Pakistan foreign minister's big admission on truce talks
"We don't mind third-party involvement, but India has categorically been stating it's a bilateral matter," says Ishaq Dar
- Sep 16, 2025,
- Updated Sep 16, 2025 7:01 PM IST
Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has admitted that India never agreed to third-party mediation, undermining US President Donald Trump's claim that he ended the conflict between New Delhi and Islamabad.
Dar said the United States had once conveyed a ceasefire proposal between India and Pakistan, but Washington later clarified that New Delhi considered all matters with Islamabad strictly bilateral.
"We don't mind third-party involvement, but India has categorically been stating it's a bilateral matter. We don't mind bilateral, but the dialogues have to be comprehensive -- on terrorism, trade, economy, Jammu and Kashmir, all subjects that we have discussed earlier," Dar told Al Jazeera.
Dar claimed that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio assured in May that talks would soon take place at a neutral venue. But in a follow-up meeting in Washington on July 25, Rubio confirmed that India considers it a bilateral issue. "So when the ceasefire offer came through Secretary Rubio to me on the 10th of May. I was told that there would be dialogue between you and India in an independent place. When we met on 25th of July during a bilateral meeting myself with Secretary Rubio in Washington, I asked him what happened to those dialogue. He said India says that it is a bilateral issue," Dar said.
The minister stressed that Pakistan was open to talks but could not compel India. "So we are not begging for anything. If any country wants dialogue, we are happy. We believe that dialogue is the way forward but obviously it takes two to tango. So, unless India wishes to have dialogue, we can't force dialogue."
Trump had publicly claimed on several occasions that he stopped the war between India and Pakistan. However, New Delhi categorically denied this, saying India and Pakistan agreed on 10 May for a cessation of firing and military activity as a result of direct contact between the DGMOs of both nations.
"This contact was initiated by the Pakistani side. India had already achieved on 8 May the main objectives that it had set forth in terms of destroying designated terrorism infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Jammu & Kashmir," the MEA said.
After Dar's admission, BJP's Amit Malviya tweeted: "THERE WAS NO 3RD PARTY MEDIATION. Rahul Gandhi, listen carefully → Pakistan's own Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar told Al-Jazeera that India categorically rejected any third-party ceasefire mediation. Stop peddling lies. Stop echoing Pakistan’s propaganda."
Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has admitted that India never agreed to third-party mediation, undermining US President Donald Trump's claim that he ended the conflict between New Delhi and Islamabad.
Dar said the United States had once conveyed a ceasefire proposal between India and Pakistan, but Washington later clarified that New Delhi considered all matters with Islamabad strictly bilateral.
"We don't mind third-party involvement, but India has categorically been stating it's a bilateral matter. We don't mind bilateral, but the dialogues have to be comprehensive -- on terrorism, trade, economy, Jammu and Kashmir, all subjects that we have discussed earlier," Dar told Al Jazeera.
Dar claimed that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio assured in May that talks would soon take place at a neutral venue. But in a follow-up meeting in Washington on July 25, Rubio confirmed that India considers it a bilateral issue. "So when the ceasefire offer came through Secretary Rubio to me on the 10th of May. I was told that there would be dialogue between you and India in an independent place. When we met on 25th of July during a bilateral meeting myself with Secretary Rubio in Washington, I asked him what happened to those dialogue. He said India says that it is a bilateral issue," Dar said.
The minister stressed that Pakistan was open to talks but could not compel India. "So we are not begging for anything. If any country wants dialogue, we are happy. We believe that dialogue is the way forward but obviously it takes two to tango. So, unless India wishes to have dialogue, we can't force dialogue."
Trump had publicly claimed on several occasions that he stopped the war between India and Pakistan. However, New Delhi categorically denied this, saying India and Pakistan agreed on 10 May for a cessation of firing and military activity as a result of direct contact between the DGMOs of both nations.
"This contact was initiated by the Pakistani side. India had already achieved on 8 May the main objectives that it had set forth in terms of destroying designated terrorism infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Jammu & Kashmir," the MEA said.
After Dar's admission, BJP's Amit Malviya tweeted: "THERE WAS NO 3RD PARTY MEDIATION. Rahul Gandhi, listen carefully → Pakistan's own Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar told Al-Jazeera that India categorically rejected any third-party ceasefire mediation. Stop peddling lies. Stop echoing Pakistan’s propaganda."