The vice president briefed President Donald Trump on the plan, then spoke with Modi at noon ET on Friday, making clear to the Indian prime minister that the White House believed there was a high probability for dramatic escalation as the conflict went into the weekend, the administration officials said. Vance encouraged Modi to have his country communicate with Pakistan directly and to consider options for de-escalation, the officials said. The behind-the-scenes details of the US involvement have not previously been reported.
At that point, the officials said, the US believed the nuclear-armed neighbors were not talking, and it needed to get them back to the bargaining table. Vance also outlined to Modi a potential off-ramp that the US understood the Pakistanis would be amenable to, the officials said, though they did not offer details.
