A lack of US “understanding or appreciation or empathy” for India’s concerns over cross-border terrorism is creating problems in ties between New Delhi and Washington, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has said.
Speaking at the Asia Society in New York on Tuesday, Jaishankar said few countries had faced the kind of terrorism India has endured from its neighbor as part of a “deliberate, conscious policy” over several decades. India-Pakistan ties remain tense after the April 2025 Pahalgam attack, which New Delhi blamed on Pakistan. It was followed by four days of military exchanges between the two countries. Islamabad denied involvement in the attack.
The remarks came days after Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif used his UN General Assembly address to raise the issue of Kashmir, criticize India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty and credit US President Donald Trump with helping end their 2025 conflict. Jaishankar responded the following day, without naming Pakistan directly, describing it as a “serial practitioner of terrorism” and saying India would exercise its right to defend itself.
The matter has previously strained India-US ties. New Delhi privately protested after Trump hosted Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, at the White House in June 2025, warning Washington that closer engagement with Pakistan sent the wrong signal on cross-border terrorism, three senior Indian officials told Reuters at the time. One official called cross-border terrorism a “red line” for India. Pakistan denies supporting militants who attack Indian targets.
Trade is another point of friction. India and the US have reached “more or less an understanding” on a proposed trade agreement, but changes in Washington’s tariff framework created new complications and contributed to “bumps” in the relationship last year, Jaishankar said.
He also pointed to mobility as an issue increasingly shaping public perceptions of the relationship, saying its economic benefits and political sensitivities are moving in different directions. Despite the disagreements, Jaishankar said New Delhi still expects India-US ties to remain on an “upward trajectory.”
The comments come as Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal begins a US visit aimed at advancing the bilateral trade agreement and finalizing an interim deal. He is due to meet US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer during the trip.