Jakarta. A Pakistani envoy said Thursday that Indonesia could play a role in preventing India from worsening the ongoing conflict as the nuclear-armed neighbors are on the brink of war.

Indian military forces launched missile strikes on multiple locations across Pakistan, including the Pakistan-administered Kashmir, early on Wednesday. The death toll from these attacks had risen to 31, with 57 people wounded, the Pakistani military reported. The strikes were in the wake of the deadly militant attack on tourists in the Indian-administered Kashmir, which claimed 26 lives. The victims were mostly Indian Hindu tourists. New Delhi alleged that Pakistan was behind the massacre, something that Islamabad had denied. A day after the May 7 attack, Pakistan reported that it had shot down 12 Indian drones that entered its airspace.

Roshan Lal, the chargé d’affaires of the Pakistani Embassy in Indonesia, briefed Jakarta-based reporters on the latest situation, including what the Southeast Asian nation could do from his country’s standpoint. According to Lal, Indonesia can urge India to restrain itself, citing Jakarta’s relations with New Delhi as the reason. 

“Indonesia is a friendly country. We have historic relations. Indonesia has maintained good relations with India. Being a responsible, brotherly country, Indonesia can obviously play a role,” Lal said.

Lal added: “We have urged all our brotherly countries to urge India not to escalate the situation.”

Indonesia has demanded India to restrain itself in a foreign ministerial statement. Jakarta also asked Pakistan to do the same. 

“We urge both parties to exercise restraint and prioritize dialogue in resolving the crisis,” the statement reads. 

Indonesia said that it would keep tabs on the conflict. 

Indonesia established diplomatic relations with Pakistan in 1950. Jakarta’s ties with New Delhi took form a year earlier. Both countries are trading with Indonesia, although there is a huge gap in the trade figures. In 2024, India-Indonesia trade totaled $26 billion, with the latter booking $20.3 billion in exports. Indonesia’s trade with Pakistan amounted to $4.1 billion last yea,r with Jakarta recording a $2.9 billion surplus.

Early this year, Indonesia joined BRICS -- a trading bloc which India, among others, had founded. Indonesia and Pakistan are also early members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

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