India is ready to react to either positive or negative signals from Pakistan, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishanker said on Friday, while stressing that the era of “uninterrupted” dialogue between the neighboring nations was now over.
Speaking with journalists in New Delhi regarding India’s ties with Pakistan, the Indian official said “actions have consequences.” However, he said, India was ready to react to any developments across the borders—be they “positive or negative”—even though the “era of uninterrupted dialogue… is over.”
“So far as Jammu and Kashmir is concerned, Article 370 is done. The issue now is … what kind of relationship can we contemplate with Pakistan…” he was quoted as saying by Indian media outlets. To another query on whether India was satisfied with the current ties, Jaishankar said: “Maybe yes, maybe no … but what I do want to say is that we are not passive, and that whether events take a positive or negative direction … either way we will react.”
Ties between Pakistan and India have been virtually frozen since 2019, when Delhi unilaterally abrogated the special constitutional status of the disputed Jammu and Kashmir region. While there have been hints at attempts to mend ties, no concrete actions have emerged, leaving ties between the two states at an impasse.
India, much like Pakistan, has to contend with adverse ties in almost its immediate region. In recent weeks, the country has lost much of its support in Bangladesh with the ouster of Sheikh Hasina Wajed, who was considered a pro-India prime minister. Upon fleeing her country, she sought refuge in India, where she still remains.
Similarly, India’s ties with China and Nepal are strained; it is attempting to foster good relations with Sri Lanka; and its ties with the Maldives are reportedly uneasy.
On Thursday, Pakistan’s Foreign Office confirmed that Islamabad had extended an invitation to Modi to attend the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Islamabad. Asked to comment on this, an Indian foreign ministry spokesman demurred, saying the matter had not yet been decided.