Pakistan did not ask but agreed to ceasefire with India: FO

• Pakistan denies Indian media claims of requesting ceasefire.
• United States brokered ceasefire after 87-hour conflict. 
  
• Rubio had informed Dar India ready for ceasefire: FO.

ISLAMBAD: Pakistan has categorically dismissed the Indian media’s claims citing Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar as saying that Islamabad had requested a ceasefire following recent standoff with India.

The nuclear-armed neighbouring arch-rivals had engaged in a serious military confrontation following India's unprovoked missile attacks on targets within Pakistani territory last month.

Pakistan army launched a retaliatory operation named Bunyan um Marsoos (Iron Wall) to counter the Indian aggression, which New Delhi branded as a response to the alleged Pakistani involvement in the attack on tourists in illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam in April.

Both countries suffered losses of life and property while Pakistan Air Force downed at least six Indian fighter jets, including expensive French aircraft, Rafale, while successfully defending the country's territorial integrity.

The 87-hours conflict, which raised fears of a nuclear war between the two countries, finally ended in a ceasefire brokered by the United States. Since then, India has repeatedly asserted that Pakistan had first reached out to the US to request a halt in fighting, a claim that Islamabad has vehemently denied.

“We categorically reject claims that Pakistan sought a ceasefire following the Indian aggression,” the Foreign Office spokesperson said in a statement issued late Friday.

The spokesperson said that DPM Dar, in his media interviews and statements, had explained that Pakistan responded decisively to Indian aggression in exercise of its right to self-defence.

He explained that the friendly states, including Saudi Arabia, and particularly the United States, played a crucial role in facilitating the ceasefire between Pakistan and India.

“The sequence of events clearly demonstrates that Pakistan did not initiate or ask anyone for a ceasefire but agreed to it when US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called Dar at 8:15am on May 10, 2025, and informed that India is ready to ceasefire if Pakistan is willing,” the spokesperson recalled.

The FO further stated that the FM confirmed Pakistan’s consent to the proposal. He said that later at around 9am, Saudi FM Prince Faisal also called Dar and informed the same about India and sought same confirmation that Secretary of State Marco Rubio had sought earlier.

The US president is on record reiterating his stance and has even offered to mediate the longstanding Kashmir dispute between the two countries — a stance also highlighted by the US State Department as well.

Although Pakistan has time again praised and credited President Trump for his role in the ceasefire, which he himself has highlighted on multiple occasions, India has denied any US involvement whatsoever.