India and Pakistan Teeter on Brink of Full-Scale War
Tensions escalate after Pakistan denounces Indian operation as ‘an act of war’.
India and Pakistan exchange fire across the line of control between Indian- and Pakistan-administered Kashmir after India launched Operation Sindoor. Pakistan says India’s missile attacks on Punjab province and Pakistan-administered Kashmir killed at least 31 people and wounded dozens. Indian officials say at least 10 have been killed and more wounded in Indian-administered Kashmir due to Pakistani fire. Pakistan says it shot down five Indian fighter jets – India is yet to respond. India says its attacks hit “terror” training sites; Pakistan says mosques and civilians were struck, calling it an “act of war” and promising a robust response. Tensions have been escalating between the two nuclear-armed countries since a deadly attack in Indian-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam on April 22, which India blamed on Pakistan. Pakistan has denied any involvement - Al Jazeera
Pakistan’s National Security Committee calls India’s assault a “heinous and shameful crime” in violation of international law.
Khawaja Asif, Pakistan’s Minister of Defence, calls the Indian assault an “invitation to expand the conflict”. Asif told CNN that his country is “trying to avoid” an all-out war with India but must be prepared for one. “We cannot be caught with our guards down,” he said.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke by phone with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to convey his solidarity following India’s attacks, the Turkish presidency said. During the call, Erdogan told Sharif that Turkiye supported what he called Pakistan’s “calm and restrained policies” in the crisis, his office said in a statement. Erdogan also said he found “appropriate” Islamabad’s call for an investigation into an attack last month on Indian-administered Kashmir that triggered the crisis. “Erdogan stated that Turkiye was ready to do what it can to prevent the tensions from escalating, and that his diplomatic contacts in that regard would continue,” the statement said.
Russia on Wednesday expressed deep concern at the escalation of military confrontation between India and Pakistan. “We are deeply concerned about the intensifying military confrontation between India and Pakistan after the terrorist attack near the city of Pahalgam,” Russia Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova was quoted as saying by State-run news agency TASS - The Hindu
The Trump administration earlier this year urged the Ukrainian government to accept an unspecified number of U.S. deportees who are citizens of other countries, according to documents reviewed by The Washington Post, an extraordinary request of a nation at war and dependent on American military and financial support for its support. The documents do not indicate how officials in Kyiv responded to the early January proposal, relayed by a senior U.S. diplomat, that called for sending third country nationals to Ukraine amid Russia’s deadly, devastating invasion - and despite the absence of a functioning airport there because of continued air attacks. A Ukrainian diplomat informed the U.S. Embassy only that her government would offer a response once it formulated a position, according to the documents, which show that similar proposals were issued to a number of other countries around the same date. Ukraine has not accepted any third country nationals from the United States, and there is no indication that Kyiv seriously considered the American proposal - Washington Post
Ukrainian drones caused massive disruptions at Moscow airports days before Russia’s Victory Day parade on Friday. At least 60,000 people had their trips delayed or cancelled, with around 350 flights reportedly affected. A slew of flight delays and diversions at Moscow airports affected thousands of travellers yet again on Wednesday following another Ukrainian drone attack. Days before the Victory Day parade in the Russian capital — one of the largest public holidays and the most important events for President Vladimir Putin — chaos in Moscow's airspace persisted for the third day in a row. According to the Association of Russia’s Tour Operators, some airports have been closed, while around 350 flights have been reportedly affected. At least 60,000 passengers have experienced disruption, with many of them left stuck on board planes for several hours. Among those affected is Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić. His plane was reportedly forced to divert to the Azerbaijani capital of Baku because of the threats in Russian airspace. According to Serbian state news agency Tanjug, his flight to Moscow to attend the parade was disrupted by what the agency calls "active hostilities between Russia and Ukraine". Brussels issued a stark warning to the Serbian leader a few days ago, indicating that Vučić's visit would violate EU membership criteria and potentially hurt Serbia's accession process to the 27-member bloc. In an effort to protect and secure the parade, Putin announced a unilateral ‘truce’ from Thursday to midnight on Sunday. The Kremlin announced the measure on 28 April, claiming all military actions would halt during that period and urging Ukraine to "follow this example." Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed the proposal as a "theatrical performance" designed to reduce Russia's international isolation and secure favourable conditions for Moscow's Victory Day events on Friday. He also said that Ukraine could not guarantee the safety of foreign officials planning to attend Victory Day events in Russia - Euronews
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Top U.S. officials are set to meet with a high-level Chinese delegation this weekend in Switzerland in the first major talks between the two nations since President Donald Trump sparked a trade war with stiff tariffs on imports. - AP
Mali's junta on Wednesday suspended political parties' activities "until further notice for reasons of public order", as the opposition protests against the military government's ramped-up crackdown on dissent. Read out on national television and radio, the decree comes ahead of a rally called for Friday by parties critical of the junta against their dissolution, as well as for a return to constitutional order in the insecurity-ridden Sahel nation. All "associations of a political character" were covered in the decree signed by junta leader General Assimi Goïta and broadcast on national television. The latest measure constitutes a new act of repression of dissenting voices along with a shrinking of civic space in the west African country, ruled by the military since two coups, in 2020 and 2021 - France 24
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