• Diplomat says military dialogue aimed at making truce ‘sustainable’
• ISPR DG believes ceasefire can ‘hold easily’
• Confirms CBMs from both sides
• Says Indian policy on Kashmir not working
ISLAMABAD: A ceasefire reached between Pakistan and India following days of military confrontation does not have an expiry date, officials from both countries confirmed, putting to rest the speculations that the truce would lapse this weekend unless renewed.
Rumours of a Sunday deadline gained traction after Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar told Pakistan’s Senate last Thursday that the directors general of military operations (DGMOs) from both sides had agreed during a May 14 conversation to extend the ceasefire until May 18.
Media outlets then widely reported that the ceasefire was set to expire. However, officials from both sides clarified on Sunday that no DGMO talks were scheduled for the day and that the ceasefire, originally brokered through intensive US diplomacy, remained in force without a set end date.
“There is no expiry date to the break in hostilities, as reaffirmed in the DGMOs interaction of May 12,” an Indian official said, countering speculations of an imminent breakdown.
There was no official statement from the Pakistan Army, but a diplomat on the condition of anonymity said the ceasefire remained in effect and carried no set time frame for expiration. He said the discussions of the DGMOs were aimed at “making the ceasefire sustainable”.
The May 10 ceasefire came after the most serious escalation between the nuclear-armed neighbours in over two decades, with cross-LoC shelling, drone incursions, and air force strikes pushing both sides to the brink. The United States, led by Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, played a key role in mediating the truce, with support from Saudi Arabia.
Initial violations were reported on the day following the ceasefire. But since then, military commanders have engaged in constructive dialogue. The May 12 call between Pakistan’s Maj Gen Kashif Abdullah and India’s Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai focused on reinforcing mutual commitments to avoid any aggressive or hostile actions, officials said.
In that conversation, the two sides had agreed to begin a phased reduction of forward deployments and regular troops along the international border, restoring the usual peacetime arrangement where the border is manned primarily by Pakistan’s Rangers and India’s Border Security Force.
Foreign Office spokesman Shafqat Ali Khan said both DGMOs “have maintained periodic contact since May 10” and agreed to develop a structured mechanism for de-escalation.
While Islamabad views the ceasefire as a potential stepping stone toward broader peace talks on long-standing issues like the Kashmir dispute and water rights, India has taken a more rigid stance.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the ceasefire as a “temporary pause,” and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh declared that “Operation Sindoor is not over yet … Pakistan is on probation”.
‘Ceasefire will hold easily’
In comments underscoring Pakistan’s stance, military spokesperson Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry told Arab News that the ceasefire was holding.
The DG ISPR also reiterated Pakistan’s longstanding position on Kashmir, warning that the dispute remains a flashpoint unless resolved through dialogue.
“As far as Pakistan army is concerned, this ceasefire will hold easily and there have been confidence-building measures in communication between both the sides,” he said.
“If any violation occurs, our response is always there … but it is only directed at those posts and those positions from where the violations of the ceasefire happen. We never target civilians. We never target any civil infrastructure.”
Conflict potential persists
On a separate, the Pakistani military spokesman also warned of far-reaching consequences if India attempts to follow through on threats to cut Islamabad’s share of the Indus River water system.
Last month, New Delhi unilaterally suspended the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, blaming Pakistan for a deadly militant attack in Indian-Occupied Kashmir, an allegation Pakistan denies.
“Their policy on Kashmir — of oppression and trying to internalise it — is not working,” he said.
“Till the time Indians don’t sit and talk about Kashmir, then (as) two countries sit, and we find a solution to it, the conflict potential is there.” “I hope that time doesn’t come, but it will be such actions that the world will see and the consequences of that we will fight for years and decades to come,” the army spokesperson said. “Nobody dares stop water from Pakistan.”
The waters treaty, brokered by the World Bank, has survived multiple wars between the two neighbours and is considered one of the most successful water-sharing agreements globally. Its potential unravelling adds a dangerous new tier to an already volatile regional equation.
Published in Dawn, May 19th, 2025
