New Delhi: The opposition Congress on Monday lashed out at the Modi government over Pakistan’s pivotal US-Iran peace role, hailing Pakistan Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir’s “huge favourite” status with President Donald Trump as a “monumental setback” for India needing a total diplomatic revamp, PTI reported.
The party charged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is unequipped for this vital shift. In an X post, Congress communications chief Jairam Ramesh spotlighted: “The ‘dalal’ country, as the erudite and always nattily dressed External Affairs Minister described it, is reportedly hosting the second round of US-Iran peace talks today.”
He referenced Pakistan’s funding windfall after the April 12 session, borrowing $6 billion from Saudi Arabia and Qatar to settle a $3.5 billion UAE debt and a $1.43 billion Eurobond portion. With its economy teetering, Pakistan leans heavily on such support, Ramesh noted.
“But it is for now playing a pivotal diplomatic role after having given sanctuary to Osama Bin L
aden and other terrorists, bombing drug rehabilitation centres in Afghanistan, and most recently orchestrating the Pahalgam terror attack a year ago,” the Congress leader remarked.
Ramesh argued Modi’s engagement style has not cornered Pakistan as effectively as Dr. Manmohan Singh did post-2008 Mumbai strikes. “That Field Marshal Asim Munir — whose provocative and inflammatory remarks provided the oxygen for the Pahalgam terror attack — has become such a huge favourite of President Trump is a particularly severe setback for India,” he stated.
“That the Field Marshal and his colleagues seem to have succeeded in managing the Trump ecosystem of family and associates much better than India is obvious. It is a monumental setback for Mr. Modi’s foreign policy,” Ramesh continued. “India needs a complete overhaul of its diplomatic engagement strategy and tactics – which Mr. Modi is simply incapable of doing.”
Initial direct US-Iran discussions in Islamabad on April 11-12 yielded no deal, focused on de-escalation. Trump revealed Monday’s sequel in Pakistan to build on a ceasefire ending Wednesday, with US team enroute — but Iran has been silent on joining.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, speaking by phone Sunday with Iran’s Masoud Pezeshkian, vowed “honest” and “sincere” contributions to peace, according to a Prime Minister’s Office release on their exchange about regional tensions.