US President Donald Trump termed rising tension between India and Pakistan a shame, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke to officials in the nuclear-armed rivals after India attacked several sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

India is an important US partner for Washington, which aims to counter China’s rising influence, while Pakistan remains an ally, despite its diminished importance after the US withdrawal from neighbouring Afghanistan in 2021.

Pakistan said it was mounting a response to India’s military actions late on Tuesday, which followed an Islamist militant attack that killed 26 in the Indian-administered side of the Himalayan region on 22 April.

In recent days, Washington urged the neighbours to work with each other to de-escalate tensions and arrive at a “responsible solution.”

Top US leaders, including Trump, offered support to India after the 22 April attack. American officials did not directly blame Pakistan.

Last month analysts said Washington may leave India and Pakistan on their own in the early days of the tension, in part because it has a lot to deal with in achieving diplomatic goals in Russia’s war in Ukraine and Israel’s war in Gaza.

India and Pakistan will figure out relations between themselves, Trump said on 25 April: “They’ll get it figured out one way or the other.”

In recent days, the US State Department has said it was in touch with both nations at multiple levels and Rubio also held telephone calls last week with them.

Both Hindu-majority India and Islamic Pakistan claim Muslim-majority Kashmir in full, with each controlling only part and having fought wars over the region.

India blamed Pakistan for the 22 April attack. Pakistan denied the claims and called for a neutral investigation.