US says it mediated the truce
STATE TIMES NEWS
NEW DELHI: The directors general of military operations (DGMO) of India and Pakistan have agreed to stop all firings and military action on land, air and sea with effect from 5 pm on Saturday, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri has announced.
The brief announcement by the foreign secretary came shortly after US President Donald Trump said India and Pakistan have agreed to a “full and immediate” ceasefire after talks mediated by the US.
The DGMO of Pakistan called the DGMO of India at 3.35 pm earlier this afternoon, Misri said.
“It was agreed between them that both sides would stop all firing and military action on land, and in the air and sea, with effect from 1700 hours IST Saturday,” he said.
“Instructions have been given on both sides to give effect to this understanding. The DGMOs will talk again on May 12 at 1200 hours,” he added.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio termed it a US-brokered ceasefire while commending Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Shehbaz Sharif on “their wisdom, prudence, and statesmanship in choosing the path of peace.”
“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,” the US president announced in a post on Truth Social.
“Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump added.
The announcement by Trump came after Rubio spoke to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Pakistan Army chief Gen Asim Munir.
US Vice President JD Vance expressed gratitude to the leaders of India and Pakistan for their “hard work and willingness to engage in this ceasefire.”
“Great work from the President’s team, especially Secretary Rubio. And my gratitude to the leaders of India and Pakistan for their hard work and willingness to engage in this ceasefire,” Vance said in a post on X.
In a statement, Rubio said he was “pleased to announce the Governments of India and Pakistan have agreed to an immediate ceasefire and to start talks on a broad set of issues at a neutral site”.
“Over the past 48 hours, Vice President Vance and I have engaged with senior Indian and Pakistani officials, including Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Shehbaz Sharif, External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir, and National Security Advisors Ajit Doval and Asim Malik,” he said.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres welcomed “all efforts to de-escalate the conflict”.
“We are monitoring but we welcome all efforts to de-escalate the conflict,” Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, told PTI in New York.
Soon after the announcement of the ceasefire, Pakistan said it was opening its airspace for all kinds of traffic.
“All airports in the country are available for normal flight operations. Passengers are requested to contact the relevant airline for the latest schedule of their flights,” the Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA) said.
Pakistan’s airspace remained closed for a certain duration and routes due to the tension with India, which hampered regular air traffic, resulting in inconvenience for passengers.
