"Not the time for military confrontation, it can become counterproductive": Former Indian diplomat Manju Seth

Speaking to ANI, Manju Seth said, "Russia had condemned the terror attacks immediately after they took place, and today President Putin has spoken to our Prime Minister Modi and conveyed their condolences and condemned terrorism and said that they stand with India on this...Nobody is supporting military confrontation; I don't think this is a time for us to go into that. I believe this is not the right time. Our Prime Minister has said this is not an era of war...This is not a good time and can impact national interests."

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and strongly condemned the dastardly Pahalgam terror attack and expressed "full support" to India in the fight against terrorism, said a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

President Putin emphasised that the perpetrators of the heinous attack and their supporters must be brought to justice.It was also noted that during the conversation, both leaders reiterated their commitment to further deepen the India-Russia Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership.

PM Modi also extended greetings to President Putin on the celebration of the 80th anniversary of Victory Day and invited him to the 23rd India-Russia Annual Summit to be held in India later in the year.

Earlier on May 3, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation S V Lavrov in a telephonic conversation with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar discussed the terrorist attack near Pahalgam. Lavrov in his call with Jaishankar called for the settlement of disagreements between Delhi and Islamabad.

Lavrov called for settlements by political and diplomatic means on a bilateral basis. Following the Pahalgam attack, India has taken strong countermeasures against Pakistan for its support of cross-border terrorism. (ANI)