India and Pakistan agree to full ceasefire

Both countries announced the ceasefire Saturday morning. Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar issued a statement on X saying the ceasefire would take effect immediately. He added that Pakistan has always strived for peace and security in the region, but never at the cost of compromising its sovereignty or territorial integrity. Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar also confirmed the ceasefire through a similar statement, while insisting that India will continue to take a hard line against terrorism in all of its forms.

What has the U.S. government had to say? President Donald Trump praised the agreement in a statement posted to his account on Truth Social Saturday morning. He congratulated both countries on using what he characterized as common sense and great intelligence to come together on the arrangement.

What prompted the agreement? The news outlet India Today reported that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio reached out to leaders on both sides of the conflict hours before the ceasefire deal was announced. Rubio spoke with Pakistan’s Army Chief General Asim Munir on Friday, according to India Today, and Jaishankar posted on X early Saturday morning that he’s spoken with Rubio. He insisted that India’s response to the conflict had always been measured and responsible. In recent days he said he’s also spoken with Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide and U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy.

In a statement Saturday morning, Pakistani Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif thanked Trump for his leadership and proactive role in fostering peace in the region. He also thanked Vice President J.D. Vance and Rubio for their contributions to the South Asian peace process, adding that he believed the ceasefire marked a new beginning for the region. 

Dig deeper: Listen to Myrna Brown’s interview on The World and Everything in It with Sumit Ganguly, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, about the conflict between India and Pakistan.