Pakistan has captured an Indian pilot, escalating the tension between the two nuclear-armed nations

India has called for the safe and immediate return of a fighter pilot seized by Pakistan after being shot down during tit-for-tat incursions over Kashmir that have edged the pair closer to war than at any point in the past 20 years.





Its pilot, a wing commander identified as Abhi Nandan, appeared in a bloodied uniform as he gave his name and rank in a video released by the Pakistani armed forces. Asked by his interrogator to say more, he replied: “I am sorry, sir, that’s all I’m supposed to tell you.”





By Wednesday evening, India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, had yet to comment publicly on the fighting but was meeting military chiefs at his residence in Delhi.





Meanwhile, Pakistan’s prime minister, Imran Khan, appealed for talks, making reference to both countries’ nuclear arsenals.





Khan said in a televised address after the airstrikes that the time had come for a diplomatic solution to the crisis. “With the weapons you have and the weapons we have, can we afford miscalculation? Shouldn’t we think that if this escalates, what will it lead to?”