Finding support: On Operation Sindoor, international reaction 

The international reaction to India’s strikes on terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan has been one of concern, but muted and non-recriminatory, indicating that for most world capitals, India’s actions in response to the Pahalgam attacks were more or less expected, and even understood. While there have been calls for restraint and resolution through dialogue and diplomacy, there has been little action taken by any country to bring about much pressure to avert the strikes. This can be chalked up to New Delhi’s briefings to envoys, and calls by the Prime Minister, Ministers and the National Security Adviser to counterparts around the world through this crisis, that began with the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22. New Delhi’s mature messaging has been that India is targeting terrorists that it hoped Pakistan would, especially after the “barbaric” nature of the Pahalgam attack. The Indian Air Force’s operations on May 7, on targets identified with terror groups, were precisely planned, with India’s assurance that no civil, economic or military locations would be hit. It was also impossible to escape the symbolism — details of the operations were delivered by two women officers of different faiths, sending out an image of progressive, pluralistic and resolute nation.

With further operations overnight, it is clear that tensions continue to rise. The U.K., the U.S., Russia, and the UN have reached out to New Delhi and Islamabad to try and defuse tensions, and the arrival of the Saudi and Iranian Foreign Ministers in India indicates some of those apprehensions. The government must be careful that its well-prepared response thus far is not derailed by an unplanned escalation, especially one provoked by Pakistan. While Pakistan has fewer friends, it is not without allies such as China, Türkiye and Malaysia, all of whom have backed its call for an “independent investigation”, and the government would do well to keep its global message reasoned and rational. It could also offer to share evidence on the terror trail at the UN and other agencies in order to bring more pressure on Pakistan to act against the groups responsible. In doing so, New Delhi must avoid the pitfalls of being “hyphenated” with Pakistan, allowing bilateral matters to become internationalised, or needing mediation. To that end, the government may consider, if it has not already, opening a channel of communication, as the NSA had with Pakistani interlocutors, to de-escalate tensions after the misfiring of an Indian missile into Pakistan and to forge the LoC ceasefire agreement in 2021. While New Delhi’s messaging, of fighting the scourge of terrorism, will always find it unequivocal support in every part of the world, an all-out war with Pakistan in an unstable neighbourhood is counter-productive and in no one’s interest.