Congress leader Jairam Ramesh questioned the Indian government on Wednesday over recent remarks by a top United States military official praising Pakistan’s counter-terrorism efforts. Taking to X, Ramesh wrote, “Recently, the head of the US Central Command called Pakistan a ‘great partner in the counter-terrorism campaign’. What will our Prime Minister and his ovation say to this? Is this not a diplomatic setback for India?”
His statement followed US Central Command chief General Michael Kurilla’s testimony before the House Armed Services Committee, where the outgoing commander described Pakistan as a “phenomenal partner” in counter-terrorism efforts.
The comments came at a time when India had been actively campaigning to expose Pakistan’s support for cross-border terrorism, particularly after the deadly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam in April.
During the hearing, General Kurilla urged Washington not to adopt a zero-sum approach in South Asia, stating that the US must maintain strategic relations with both India and Pakistan.
“We need to have a relationship with Pakistan and with India. I do not believe it is a binary switch that we can’t have one with Pakistan if we have a relationship with India,” he said. “We should look at the merits of the relationship for the positives that it has.”
Kurilla’s remarks came even as India stepped up diplomatic efforts to hold Pakistan accountable for its alleged role in the Pahalgam attack, which killed 26 people on April 22. In response, India carried out precision air strikes on terror infrastructure across the border in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir on May 7.
The military escalation ended on May 10 after the Directors General of Military Operations from both countries reached an understanding.
Indian officials, including External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, had reiterated that India would not accept any equivalence between victims of terrorism and the perpetrators. New Delhi also expressed concern over multiple international responses that appeared to hyphenate India and Pakistan during the brief military flare-up.
General Kurilla, who is expected to retire later this summer, also spoke about Pakistan’s role in combatting the Islamic State’s regional affiliate, ISIS-Khorasan, also known as IS-KP. He acknowledged efforts by the Pakistani military and army chief General Asim Munir in countering the terror group.