Good morning! India will likely become the first to finalise a bilateral trade agreement with the United States. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said trade deal talks with New Delhi are “very close” to being sealed. “India also has fewer non-tariff trade barriers, obviously, no currency manipulation, very, very little government subsidies, so reaching a deal with the Indians is much easier,” he was quoted as saying by the New York Post. Not only will this development help India sidestep the 26 per cent reciprocal tariffs on hold till July, but it will also boost trade to $500 billion by 2030 from over $190 billion. Now, let’s dive into today’s edition, which brings you the latest political and diplomatic developments in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack 👇🏽 You can keep up with the evolving developments and updates through our Live Blog. 🚨 Big Story Turn of the screw: In just two days after the horrific Pahalgam terror attack, India ratcheted up the pressure on Pakistan with seven retaliatory moves. Latest ones: After putting the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) on hold, India formally informed Pakistan that the move was official with immediate effect. It also decided to cancel all existing visas for Pakistan nationals, effective April 27, and suspend visa services for them. Spelling it out: In his first comments on the attack, Prime Minister Narendra Modi sent Pakistan a tough message on Thursday from a rally in Bihar when he said: “India will identify, track and punish every terrorist and their backers, and pursue them to the ends of the earth”. He even switched to English, which he rarely does in the middle of a public speech, to address the international community and state that the country's “spirit will never be broken by terrorism”. ‘United, in one voice’: The Centre managed to forge a domestic political consensus on the matter, with the Opposition pledging unconditional support to the government in whatever actions it takes“in the interest of the country”. “We are together on this issue… so that a message goes out to the people of the country and outside that the country is united,” Congress party chief Mallikarjun Kharge said following the all-party meeting on Thursday. At the same time, several leaders across party lines also raised questions over the “lapses” in security and intelligence. Three men in the sketches: The sketches of the Pahalgam attackers released by the Jammu and Kashmir police feature two Pakistani nationals –Hashim Musa and Ali Bhai alias Talha— who infiltrated sometime in late 2023 and have been active in the Valley for almost two years now. The other, identified as Adil Hussain Thoker, is a South Kashmir resident who acted as their local guide. 🎧 For a deep dive into the raft of measures by India and Pakistan’s reaction so far, tune into today’s episode of our 3 Things podcast. ⚡ Only in Express The Pahalgam abyss: “The tragedy of the moment is that the bloody frontier this act in Pahalgam has drawn will still shadow our political destiny, whichever way we act.” On the moral issue of the terror attack, columnist Pratap Bhanu Mehta opines that there is no point speculating on the motives as it is the effect—a sense of foreboding about religious violence in South Asia—that such an act produces which is challenging to shake off for years to come. Key problem: India and Pakistan share a more than 3,300-km-long border, of which close to 1,000 km lie in Jammu and Kashmir. Hunting down terrorists in the jungles of J&K is a Herculean task. What needs to be done, then? Preventing them from crossing over in the first place via a robust counter-infiltration grid. Deeptiman Tiwary explains this security challenge. 📰 From the Front Page ‘Aar ya paar’: In many Kashmir crises over the years, India and Pakistan have walked back from the brink. But the bilateral relations are entering uncharted territory in the aftermath of the terror attack with Islamabad’s framing of the possibility of India blocking the flow of river waters into Pakistan as an “act of war” and its decision to reserve the right to suspend all previous agreements, including the 1972 Shimla Agreement. 📌 Must Read Trade via Attari: A day after the attack, the Integrated Check Post (ICP) at the Attari-Wagah border was immediately sealed as part of India's five-point retaliatory measures. This decision is set to halt cross-border trade worth Rs 3,886.53 crore between the two countries. To put this into context, bilateral trade had already been in decline since India imposed a 200 per cent duty on Pakistani goods in 2019 following the Pulwama terrorist attack. Airspace woes: In its countermeasure, Pakistan closed its airspace to Indian carriers on Thursday. While it might still be too early to assess the impact, the airlines’ costs are bound to rise, which could mean higher airfares. Why? Indian carriers’ flights taking off from north India to Central Asia, the Caucasus, West Asia, Europe, the UK, and North America will now face longer durations and higher fuel burn. ⏳ And Finally… In grief: While the focus shifts to larger conversations on terrorism and diplomatic ties, the loss and grief of those who lived through the horror of the Pahalgam attack to lose their loved ones hangs heavy. N Ramachandran from Kerala was among the 26 victims of the attack. His daughter, Arathi, lay numb, holding on to his body, but it was a panicked cry from her children that made her move away from the terrorists. “It was a wake-up call. Then, it was the mother inside me that guided me. Along with the children, I ran through the woods,” she recounts. That’s all for today! Until tomorrow Vibha
