Pakistan had one primary aim for its terror attack in Pahalgam: Internationalise the Kashmir issue. This goes against the grain of the Simla Accord between India and Pakistan which stipulates that all disputes between the two countries be resolved bilaterally without outside interference. But when has Pakistan honoured the Simla Accord? India did well to destroy terror camps deep inside Pakistani territory.

These strikes will make Pakistan think twice before launching another terror strike within India. A slugfest of a few days followed in which no side emerged a clear winner until a ceasefire was brokered by the Saudis and the Americans who were afraid that this summer fest would escalate into a nuclear holocaust. The key role in the ceasefire was played by the Saudis, who are trusted by India and who Pakistan is in hock to. But true to type, the Americans took credit. President Donald Trump was the first to announce the ceasefire, on his social media platform, Truth Social. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio took to X to say that the two countries – India and Pakistan – will hold talks at a neutral venue. But this neutral venue business goes against the very essence of the Simla Accord.

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It is exactly what Pakistan wants. It rewards the terrorist – Pakistan – and lays onus on the victim – India. India must not fall for this trick. In its first 100 days itself, the Trump administration has reduced itself to tatters. Forget out the damage it has done to its own economy. Think about the errors of judgment on the foreign policy front. Donald Trump thought that he would get the Nobel Peace Prize by negotiating peace between the Israelis and Hamas, and/or the Ukrainians and the Russians. But both conflicts have proven intractable as ever. The ceasefire between the Israelis and Hamas has broken down. Trump has effectively handed Gaza to the Israelis to destroy further, as if it could be. Vladimir Putin of Russia is proving intractable in finding a solution to the Russo-Ukrainian war.

Trump has signed a carpet-bagging minerals deal with Ukraine, extracting his pound of flesh from the Russo-Ukraine conflict. Even as President Zelenskyy has proven to be more amenable to American demands, Putin, who Trump thought he had in his pocket, has become more demanding. The problem is that neither Trump, nor his foreign policy team including Rubio and Vice President JD Vance (who is a jack of all trades in this administration) have any significant foreign policy expertise. None of them are dyed-in-the-wool diplomats. Trump says that Rubio and Vance spent the night negotiating peace between India and Pakistan. The issues between India and Pakistan are too complex and everlasting to be resolved in a nightly discussion.

Take the issue of Kashmir. Kashmir is an integral part of India. Why? Because Pakistan spurned it twice. In the first instance, in 1947, the Maharaja of Kashmir, Hari Singh, had signed a standstill agreement with Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan. The Maharaja had two options before himself: go independent or join Pakistan. Hari Singh wanted to become independent. In desperation, Jinnah sent in his military forces to Kashmir, who, true-to-type raped and pillaged the region at will. The Maharaja was left with no option but to accede to India. Earlier, India had offered Kashmir to Pakistan in exchange for the southern princely state of Hyderabad but Jinnah thwarted the offer. Now Pakistan has no locus standi left in Kashmir.

Pakistan says often that Kashmir is the jugular vein of itself. But look at the map. Kashmir is at the very head of India. Kashmir is not Pakistan’s jugular vein, it is India’s. If Kashmir unravels, all of India might unravel. India is a secular democracy of 1.4 billion people, out of which about 200 million are Muslim. Kashmir is a Muslim-majority state of about 13 million. Kashmir is an example that India can be secular. If Kashmir goes, then what travails will the rest of India’s Muslims face? The US has always been an ally of Pakistan, despite occasional bumps in their relationship like the double game that Pakistan played in the war against terror in Afghanistan. For that reason, Trump cut off all military aid to Pakistan in his first term.

Now Trump is singing a different tune of amity with Pakistan. Trump knows that his administration is collapsing. He has assembled the worst cabinet ever, populated by novices who conduct war in publicly open messaging platforms, and whose only qualification is sycophancy to Trump. Trump believes that by negotiating peace between India and Pakistan he will win the Nobel Peace Prize and rescue his government. India must see through his designs. India has never been a friend of the US. Our all-weather friend is Russia, who helped us with arms even in the recent bout with Pakistan. If India and Pakistan have to talk, that must happen without outside mediation or interlocution. The main issue between India and Pakistan is not Kashmir; the only issue is stopping Pakistan from terrorizing India, which India has done in the recent conflagration. India has won the war. It must not lose the peace.

(The writer is an expert on energy and contributes regularly to publications in India and overseas.)