US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting in the Oval Office with China’s Vice Premier Liu He (MANDEL NGAN)

Washington (AFP) – US President Donald Trump voiced alarm Friday at the “very dangerous situation” between India and Pakistan following a deadly attack against Indian forces in Kashmir.

“It’s very dangerous situation between the two countries,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

“Right now there is a lot of problems between India and Pakistan because of what happened,” he said.

Tensions have soared between the nuclear-armed rivals since a suicide attack last week killed 41 soldiers on the Indian side of divided Kashmir, the deadliest attack in years.

India has been demanding action against militants from Pakistan, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi under pressure from his Hindu nationalist base to show firmness weeks before he is set to call elections.

The attack was claimed by Jaish-e-Mohammed, an Islamist extremist group based in Pakistan, although the suicide attacker came locally from Indian Kashmir. 

Pakistan’s military on Friday warned India against any “misadventure,” saying it was capable of responding.

India and Pakistan have fought two of their three full-fledged wars over Kashmir since their partition at independence from Britain in 1947.

The United States in recent years has allied with India, seeing common interests with a fellow democracy that has been battling Islamist extremists.

The Trump administration last year cut off $300 million in military aid to Pakistan, saying that Islamabad has not done enough to fight extremists at home or close safe havens for militants in neighboring Afghanistan.

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