WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with Pakistan’s Army Chief, General Asim Munir, and urged both India and Pakistan to find ways to de-escalate.

State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce said, Rubio also offered US assistance in starting “constructive” talks between the two South Asian neighbours to “avoid future conflicts”.

Earlier, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar and reiterated that Pakistan and India must find ways to de-escalate the current situation.

The US Secretary of State, who also spoke with Indian External Affairs Minister Jaishankar, called for re-establishment of direct communication between the two countries to avoid miscalculation.

He also offered US assistance in starting constructive talks in order to avoid future conflicts, US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a statement.

According to a senior official at the Pakistan’s foreign ministry, Rubio and DPM Dar discussed the current situation in South Asia following Indian attacks on Pakistan and Pakistan’s response.

The two leaders agreed to maintain close contact.

Early Saturday, Pakistan hit back after three of its air bases came under Indian attack. Pakistan’s sweeping retaliatory action targeted multiple Indian bases , including a missile storage facility in northern India.

Earlier this week, Rubio had spoken with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar separately, emphasizing the need for de-escalation,

US President Donald Trump has also encouraged both countries to de-escalate.

“The President has expressed he wants to see this de-escalate as quickly as possible. He understands these are two countries that have been at odds with one another for decades, long before President Trump was here in the Oval Office,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said.