External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has rejected any offer of mediation by the international community, including US President Donald Trump, between India and Pakistan over Kashmir and made it clear that there will be consequences for Pakistan if terrorist attacks from its territory continue.

An article in “De Volkskrant” during his visit to the Netherlands quoted the Indian minister as saying, ‘‘We want a definitive end to terrorism. Our message is therefore: yes, the ceasefire has put an end to military actions against each other for now, but if the terrorist attacks from Pakistan continue, there will be consequences. The Pakistanis must understand that very well.’’

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Describing Pakistan as an epicentre of terrorism, Mr Jaishankar said terrorist groups active in Pakistan receive support from the Pakistani state. To strengthen his argument, he asked the questioner, ”Suppose there were large military centres in the middle of a city like Amsterdam where tens of thousands of people gathered for military training, would you say that your government knows nothing about that? Of course not.”

He said the world should not go along with the narrative that Pakistan does not know what is happening. The most notorious terrorists on the United Nations (UN) sanctions list are all in Pakistan. They operate in the big cities, in broad daylight. Their addresses are known. Their activities are known. Their mutual contacts are known. ”So let’s not pretend that Pakistan is not involved. The state is involved. The army is up to its neck in it.”

Mr Jaishankar disagreed with a suggestion that terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir is partly the result of the Kashmir issue and that this should be resolved first to combat the menace. ”No, for us terrorism is an independent, completely unacceptable international crime that should not be condoned or justified,” he said.

He said, ”The terrorists targeted the vibrant tourism industry in Jammu and Kashmir with their attack. So they are prepared to destroy things in Kashmir for their own, very limited, selfish purposes. They also deliberately gave the attack a very religious tint (Hindu versus Muslim, ed.). The world should not accept such practices.”

As for Jammu and Kashmir, Mr Jaishankar said it is a historical fact that it joined India when there was partition in 1947. ”Our position is that the illegal occupiers should return their illegally occupied parts to the rightful owner. And that is us.’’

On whether the international community can mediate or whether India is going to accept President Trump’s offer, the minister said, ”‘No, it is a bilateral issue between the countries involved.’’

On whether India has the ambition to take China’s place as the world’s factory, he said, ”Our hope is indeed that the manufacturing of products in India will grow and that we will be more integrated into global production chains. New technology can be an entry point. So our interests in market access cover a much broader spectrum of modern products, such as electronic hardware, chemicals, or all kinds of pharmaceuticals.”

Asked if India already has the political influence it should have, since despite being the largest country in the world in terms of population, it is not yet a permanent member of the UN Security Council, he said, ”That permanent seat on the Security Council is indeed one of our goals. We believe that if the much-needed reform of the UN and the Security Council finally comes about, we will receive a lot of support for our claim.”

On whether India can also play a mediating role in ending the Russian war against Ukraine, he said India has a position that many countries in the Global South probably share. India strives for a peaceful solution to this conflict. ”If we can do something about it, we are open to it. But of course this depends on the parties involved.”