EXCLUSIVE: Pakistan's ambassador to the U.S. is warning of potentially catastrophic consequences if India follows through with what Islamabad claims could be an imminent military strike in response to a recent attack in the disputed Kashmir region.
War between the two nuclear-armed states could get ugly quickly, and Pakistan's Ambassador to the U.S. Rizwan Saeed Sheikh is calling on President Donald Trump to leverage his self-professed dealmaker credentials to hammer out an agreement with India.
"This is one nuclear flashpoint," the ambassador said in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital. "It could be an important part of President Trump's legacy to attend to this situation - not with a Band-Aid solution, but by addressing the core issue: the Kashmir dispute."
Saeed described India's response to the attack in Pahalgam - which left several Indian security forces dead - as dangerously premature and inflammatory. "Within minutes of the attack, India began leveling accusations against Pakistan," he said, noting that a post-investigation report was filed just 10 minutes after the incident occurred, despite the remote and rugged terrain near the scene.
INDIA'S MODI GIVES ARMY FREEDOM TO ACT AS TENSIONS RISE WITH PAKISTAN AFTER DEADLY TERROR ATTACK
Pakistan claimed this week to have "credible intelligence" that an Indian counter-attack on its territory is imminent. The Indian Embassy in the U.S. did not respond to requests for comment on this story before publication time.
The dust-up began with a tourist massacre on April 22 in Belgaum, Kashmir. All but one of the victims were Indian citizens, and India swiftly pointed the finger at Pakistan, which rejected the charge.
The attack occurred in a remote valley only accessible on foot or by horse, and survivors claimed after the attack that the gunmen had accused some of the victims of supporting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The ambassador warned that the region, home to over 1.5 billion people, is once again being held "hostage to the war of hysteria" by India's government and media, who immediately "began beating war drums." The pair of rivals have exchanged gunfire across their heavily militarized borders since the attack.
He cited Pakistan's request for evidence linking it to the attack and Islamabad's offer to participate in a neutral, transparent inquiry - both of which he said have gone unanswered.
"Any misadventure or miscalculation can lead to a nuclear interface," the ambassador said. "That is certainly not desirable in such a densely populated region."
PAKISTAN FEARS INDIA INCURISON 'IMMINENT' AMID HEIGHTENED TENSIONS FOLLOWING TERROR ATTACK
While Pakistan denies any involvement in the attack, the ambassador said those suspected are reportedly Indian nationals whose homes have already been raided. He questioned why India is looking outside its borders rather than addressing what he characterized as "administrative inadequacies" in Jammu and Kashmir, a territory he repeatedly referred to as "illegally occupied."
He also criticized India's broader policies in Kashmir, including the alleged settlement of non-residents into the region, and what he called threats to unilaterally block water flows from Pakistan's rivers - a move he said violates the long-standing Indus Waters Treaty.
"That is as grossly illegal as it can get," said Saeed. "This is one treaty that has withstood wars between India and Pakistan." Pakistan has said they would consider the cutting off of water supplies an act of war - and made pleas to The Hague, accusing New Delhi of water terrorism.
The ambassador called on nations around the globe to help with a lasting settlement.
"Previously, when the situation has been at this level or the tensions have escalated, the international community has attended to the situation, but taken their eyes, their attention away, even before the situation could fully diffuse," said Saeed. "This time, perhaps it would be… timely in terms of the situation elsewhere on the globe, with similar instances, which one can note and see and are being attended to to perhaps not afford a Band-Aid solution, but to address the broader problem."
PAKISTAN FEARS INDIA INCURSION 'IMMINENT' AMID HEIGHTENED TENSIONS FOLLOWING TERROR ATTACK
India and Pakistan each control parts of the Kashmir region, but both claim it in full. They have fought three wars over the territory.
In 2019, a cross-border attack carried out by militants killed at least 40 Indian paramilitary personnel in Kashmir. India responded by bombing targets inside Pakistan.
Modi's government revoked Muslim-majority Kashmir's autonomy in 2019, bringing it back under Indian control and prompting protests.
Kashmir has been a disputed region since both India and Pakistan gained their autonomy from Britain in 1947. The region is now one of the most militarized in the world. Violence by regional militant groups has left tens of thousands dead.
But Modi's aggressive stance in Kashmir has precipitated relative peace over the past five years, boosting his popularity domestically. He may feel political pressure to respond with force to the most recent dust-up.
Pakistan has been ravaged by terrorism for decades, and Saeed said the nation has lost anywhere between 70,000 and 90,000 lives over the past 20 years to terror attacks.
"We cannot afford any instability in the neighborhood," said Saeed. "We want a peaceful neighborhood. But as we have been repeatedly mentioning at all levels, leadership level and all the other levels, that we want peace, but that should not in any way be misconstrued as a sign of weakness. We want peace with dignity."
