“This war is clearly good for no one,” said Kaja Kallas, the EU’s top diplomat as cross-border violence in Kashmir escalates.
The European Union is working to play a mediating role in deescalating rising tensions between India and Pakistan after a series of cross-border clashes in Kashmir that have left at least 31 dead in Pakistani territory and 10 in India, EU sources confirmed on Wednesday.
Kaja Kallas, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs, voiced the bloc’s concern from Warsaw, where EU foreign ministers are gathered for an informal meeting. “What is happening is very worrying. It’s clear that this war is good for no one,” Kallas said upon arriving at the summit, which includes a session on the deteriorating situation in the disputed region of Kashmir.
Kallas, the former prime minister of Estonia, emphasized that the EU is “trying to mediate and lower tensions” in the region. She also reiterated the bloc’s condemnation of terrorism “in all its forms and manifestations” and underscored the need to find ways to deescalate the conflict.
Speaking from Brussels, EU foreign service spokesperson Anouar el Anouni urged both India and Pakistan to take urgent measures to prevent further escalation. “We call on both sides to exercise restraint and take immediate steps to reduce tensions,” he said during a press briefing.
Anouni also condemned the April terrorist attack in the Indian town of Pahalgam, in Kashmir, and called for the perpetrators to be brought to justice. He stressed that the EU continues to advocate for “a lasting peace solution” that is “negotiated and mutually agreed.”
Tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbors have surged in recent days following a string of violent border incidents. Indian authorities have repeatedly accused Pakistan of supporting armed groups active in Kashmir. The majority-Muslim region has been a flashpoint since 1947, when both nations gained independence from Britain, and has triggered two of the three wars they have fought.
In 1999, India and Pakistan clashed in a brief but intense military conflict in the Kargil region of Kashmir. While a fragile cease-fire has been in place since 2003, both sides frequently trade accusations and engage in sporadic armed skirmishes.
The EU’s foreign ministers’ meeting in Warsaw will continue through Thursday, with discussions focused in part on the South Asian crisis and the diplomatic paths the bloc might pursue to help defuse one of the most heavily militarized borders in the world.
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