00:00A new diplomatic storm is brewing
00:29after China claimed credit for easing one of South Asia's most dangerous flashpoints.
00:35After U.S. President Donald Trump,
00:38Beijing said it helped mediate the India-Pakistan ceasefire earlier this year,
00:43a claim Indian officials are privately calling bizarre and completely unfounded.
00:49The remark has triggered sharp reactions in New Delhi,
00:52reopening questions about foreign powers competing for influence in the region.
00:57The claim came from China's foreign minister, Wang Yi,
01:01speaking at a high-level symposium in Beijing on global conflicts.
01:06Wang listed India-Pakistan tensions among issues he said China had mediated this year,
01:12alongside crises from Myanmar to the Middle East.
01:16But people familiar with the matter in New Delhi told HT that China played no role whatsoever.
01:22India and Pakistan were locked in a tense military standoff in May
01:27after a deadly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Palgam Valley killed 26 civilians.
01:34India responded with Operation Sindur,
01:37striking terror infrastructure inside Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
01:42The confrontation raised fears of wider escalation between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.
01:48During his speech, Wang Yi said global conflicts are now erupting more frequently than at any time since World War II.
01:57He portrayed China as a stabilizing force, claiming Beijing helped defuse tensions between India and Pakistan.
02:04Indian officials, however, say the ceasefire came through direct military-to-military talks, and nothing else.
02:12China's role during the standoff has drawn scrutiny before.
02:15Reports indicated Beijing may have provided Pakistan real-time surveillance and other support during the crisis.
02:23China supplied more than 80% of Pakistan's military hardware,
02:27and Indian officials believe Beijing used the conflict to showcase its weapons systems.
02:32So far, India has issued no official statement on Wang Yi's remarks,
02:37but sources in New Delhi insist there is no space for mediation by outside powers in India-Pakistan matters.
02:46One official remarked that China appears to be echoing similar claims previously made by Donald Trump that India also rejected.
02:54As global powers jostle for diplomatic credit, India's position remains firm.
03:00Peace with Pakistan was achieved bilaterally, without outside help.
03:04For New Delhi, China's remarks are not just inaccurate, they're part of a broader contest for regional influence.
03:12And in that contest, India is making clear it will not cede its narrative.
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