New Delhi, July 26 -- The issue of the ongoing trade discussions did not feature in conversations with the US at the peak of the military hostilities between India and Pakistan, Union minister of state for external affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh informed the Lok Sabha on Friday, rebutting claims by US President Donald Trump who said he threatened to cease trade with India if the neighbours did not agree to a ceasefire. In a written response to questions from Opposition MPs Mohammad Jawed, Deepak Dev Adhikari, Mala Roy, S Venkatesan and TM Selvaganapathi, the Union ministry of external affairs said there were multiple diplomatic conversations with various countries, including the US. "All our interlocutors were given a common message that India's approach was focused, measured and non-escalatory," Singh said. Singh clarified that India communicated its readiness for an "appropriate response" in case of a major escalation from Pakistan. "It was conveyed to Vice President JD Vance on May 9 that India would appropriately respond if Pakistan launched a major attack. The issue of our trade discussions did not come up in the context of conversations pertaining to the conflict," he said. Reiterating India's longstanding position on Kashmir, the Union minister added, "As regards any proposal for third-party mediation, our long-standing position remains that any outstanding issue with Pakistan will be discussed only bilaterally." The statement challenges repeated assertions by Trump, who claimed he defused the situation by threatening to cut off trade with both nuclear-armed countries....