INDIA-PAKISTAN TENSION - 16.05.2025 | SITUATION UPDATE

The situation remains calm, and both sides are enthusiastically maintaining the ceasefire agreement.  However, India’s diplomatic stance and measures against Pakistan following the escalation of tensions are still in effect, thus, it seems like India’s coercive measures are prompting Pakistan to further escalate tensions in the region.  On the other hand, currently, anti-Turkish activities such as the boycott of Turkish products have been widely observed across India in response to Turkey’s assistance to Pakistan during the conflict between India and Pakistan.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

• Indian External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar said that the Indus Waters Treaty will be held in abeyance until cross-border terrorism by Pakistan stops credibly and irrevocably.
• Indian Defence Minister said that any Terror Attack on India will be treated as an Act of War.
• India's trade relations with Turkey & Azerbaijan are likely the impact of the boycott.
• Pakistan said any kind of ceasefire violation by India would be met with a swift and assured response by Pakistan.
• Casualty since India launched missiles on 07.05.2025:

# India - deaths 18, including 5 soldiers/ injured 46. 

# Pakistan -  deaths 51, including 11 military personnel / injured 121, of whom 78 were Pakistani armed forces.

1.  Indian based media outlets reported that an Indian delegation met top officials of the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) and Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate as India stepped up efforts to designate The Resistance Front, a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) proxy, as a UN-listed terror outfit.

• Reportedly, an Indian technical team has reached New York to present evidence regarding the Pahalgam terror attack to the Monitoring Team of the 1267 Sanctions Committee that decides on the global listing of terrorist groups, official sources informed on 14.05.2025.

2.   Indian Defence Minister Mr. Rajnath Singh, who is visiting Jammu and Kashmir, remarked on 15.05.2025 that terrorists targeted tourists in Pahalgam based on their dharma (religion), but the Indian forces eliminated terrorists in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir based on their karma (deeds).

3.  Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, speaking from Srinagar, called out Pakistan's "nuclear blackmail" and questioned if the world can trust a rogue nation with such dangerous weapons. Hailing the success of Operation Sindoor, he praised the Indian Armed Forces for their precision strikes and the people of Jammu & Kashmir for standing united against terrorism, according to the Indian State Media on 15.05.2025.

• Defence Minister's comments came days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India would not tolerate "nuclear blackmail" by Pakistan and would punish cross-border terrorism strongly.

4.  Indian External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar on 15.05.2025 ruled out any third-party mediation between India and Pakistan, reiterating that dealings with Islamabad will be strictly bilateral. Talking to the media on the sidelines of an event in New Delhi, Dr Jaishankar said India has made it clear that the only thing which remains to be discussed with Pakistan is the vacating of illegally occupied Indian territory in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

5.  Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on 15.05.2025 that the Indian Prime Minister has redefined India’s policy against terrorism, and any attack on Indian soil will be considered an act of war. Singh termed Operation Sindoor as the biggest action taken by India against terrorism in history and a testament to the nation’s commitment to go to any extent to eliminate the menace.

6.  Indian State media reported that the Indian Government has revoked the security clearance of Turkish ground handling firm Celebi Airport Services India Private Limited with immediate effect. In an order issued on 15.05.2025, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security said that the decision was taken in the interest of national security. The security clearance for this company had been approved by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) Director General in November 2022.

7.  Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) University, an Indian based university, on 15.05.2025, announced the immediate suspension of all memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with institutions affiliated with the Government of Turkiye, citing national security considerations.

• According to the Indian based media on 15.05.2025, this follows decisions by other Indian based educational institutions such as Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj (CSJM) University, Kanpur, to suspend all collaborations with separate Turkish institutes over the latter’s perceived support for Pakistan in regional conflicts.

8.  Indian External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar held a conversation with Acting Afghan Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi and appreciated his condemnation of the Pahalgam terrorist attack.

9.   India's Defence Minister said on 15.05.2025 that the International Atomic Energy Agency should take charge of Pakistan's nuclear weapons, days after the nuclear-armed neighbours ended their worst military conflict in nearly three decades.

10.  Pakistan has strongly condemned the remarks of Indian Defence Minister on its nuclear arsenal, made on 15.05.2025 in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

11.  On 15.05.2025, Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (Pakistan), Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, has expressed resolve that any kind of ceasefire violation by India would be met with a swift and assured response by Pakistan.

12.  Pakistan State media reported on 15.05.2025 that, speaker Azad Jammu and Kashmir (Pakistan) Legislative Assembly Choudhary Latif Akbar has extended gratitude to China, Azerbaijan, and Turkiye for their support in favour of Pakistan in its recent stand-off with India.

• Addressing a news conference in Islamabad on 15.05.2025 along with other Hurriyat leaders, he called upon international community to pay heed towards the resolution of Kashmir dispute in accordance with the relevant UN resolutions.

13.  Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, expressing his concern over recent provocative statements by the Indian leadership, has affirmed that Pakistan would resolutely defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of any future aggression.  Reportedly, Mr. Shehbaz Sharif expressed these views during a telephonic conversation with the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, on 15.05.2025.