It’s an important week for India’s diplomacy. An All-Party Delegation led by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor will now head to the United States as part of its outreach following Operation Sindoor. What makes the visit even more interesting is that a Pakistani delegation, led by Bilawal Bhutto, is also in the US at the same time.Shashi Tharoor told ANI that while the US media space is crowded and tough, India’s message against terrorism will reach the right people, especially those who care about South Asia.
“In Washington, we’ll have an interesting situation,” Tharoor said. “The Pakistani delegation will be there almost on the same dates as us. That could increase interest in our visit since two duelling delegations will be in the same city.”
Tharoor stressed that India never wanted a war with Pakistan. “We’ve always said this is not about starting a war. It’s about responding to terrorism. If Pakistan hadn’t reacted, neither would we. We want peace and development,” he explained.
The Indian team has a busy schedule in Washington. Meetings have been set up with US government officials, senators, congressmen, and important foreign policy think tanks. Tharoor also mentioned he will speak at the National Press Club and give several interviews to American media outlets and podcasters.
He added, “America is important to us for many reasons, defence, trade, intelligence sharing, QUAD, and the G20. The UN Security Council is just one small part of the India-US relationship.”
Tharoor pointed out that while Pakistan’s delegation is only visiting a few capitals, like Washington, Brussels, and London, the Indian delegation has travelled to more places. “They’re focusing on key cities, but we’ve covered those and more,” he said.
“In Washington, we’ll have an interesting situation,” Tharoor said. “The Pakistani delegation will be there almost on the same dates as us. That could increase interest in our visit since two duelling delegations will be in the same city.”
Tharoor stressed that India never wanted a war with Pakistan. “We’ve always said this is not about starting a war. It’s about responding to terrorism. If Pakistan hadn’t reacted, neither would we. We want peace and development,” he explained.
He also denied that the US mediated the end of tensions. “No one needed to persuade us to stop. We had already made it clear we wanted to stop. If there was any persuasion, it was probably aimed at Pakistan,” he said.
The Indian team has a busy schedule in Washington. Meetings have been set up with US government officials, senators, congressmen, and important foreign policy think tanks. Tharoor also mentioned he will speak at the National Press Club and give several interviews to American media outlets and podcasters.
He added, “America is important to us for many reasons, defence, trade, intelligence sharing, QUAD, and the G20. The UN Security Council is just one small part of the India-US relationship.”
Tharoor pointed out that while Pakistan’s delegation is only visiting a few capitals, like Washington, Brussels, and London, the Indian delegation has travelled to more places. “They’re focusing on key cities, but we’ve covered those and more,” he said.
The nine-member Indian delegation includes MPs from different political parties, showing India’s united and democratic approach. Apart from Tharoor, the team has Sarfaraz Ahmad, Ganti Harish Madhur, Shashank Mani Tripathi, Bhubaneswar Kalita, Tejasvi Surya, and former Ambassador Taranjit Singh Sandhu.
Inputs from agencies
