On Friday night, two days after he was shot down in Pakistani air space, Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman crossed the border at Wagah near Amritsar and returned to his family and nation.
While Imran Khan’s ‘peace gesture’ was generally lauded by all, an NDTV report indicated that it was mounting international pressure that got the job done.
NDTV reported that the US, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia were instrumental with their intervention, prompting Pakistan to release the Indian pilot without any promise of deescalation from India’s side.
Donald Trump First to Indicate ‘Good News’
On Wednesday, 26 February, The United States had expressed concern over the growing confrontation between India and Pakistan, warning that the potential risks associated with further military action by either side are unacceptably high for both the countries.
However, on Thursday, 28 February, President Donald Trump told journalists in the Vietnamese capital Hanoi, that "reasonably attractive news was coming from India and Pakistan".
“We’ve been involved in trying to have them stop and we have some reasonably decent news. I think, hopefully, that’s going to be coming to an end. It has been going on for a long time”.Donald Trump, President, United States of America
According to NDTV, reports had surfaced that US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval had a 25-minute-long phone conversation. UAE, an important ally for India, also reportedly played a key role in the deescalation process.
Saudi Sends Foreign Minister and Envoy to Pak and India
Saudi Arabia had publicly pushed to deescalate tensions after the Pulwama attack.
Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al Jubeir isalso scheduled to visit Islamabad on Thursday “carrying an important message” from the Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, reports from Pakistan said. The Saudi envoy to India met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday as well.
(With inputs from NDTV and PTI)
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