Supporters of India's Bharatiya Janata Party shout slogans and wave country's national flags as they take part in a rally expressing solidarity with the armed forces.

India and Pakistan accused each other Thursday of failing to control their nuclear weapons, calling on the world to monitor their neighbour's arsenal just days after their most serious military confrontation in two decades.

Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said Pakistan's nuclear arsenal should be under the surveillance of the UN's atomic energy agency, while Islamabad said the international community should investigate a "black market" in India.

The latest conflict between India and Pakistan had sparked global concerns that it could spiral into a full-blown war before a ceasefire was brokered on Saturday.

"I wanted to raise this question for the world: are nuclear weapons safe in the hands of a rogue and irresponsible nation?" Singh told troops at a base in Indian-administered Kashmir.

"I believe that Pakistan's atomic weapons should be brought under the surveillance of the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)," Singh added.

Hours later, Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said the IAEA should instead probe "the repeated theft and illicit trafficking incidents involving nuclear and radioactive material in India".

"These incidents also suggest the existence of a black market for sensitive, dual-use materials inside India," its statement added.

But on Thursday, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar announced there had been "military to military communications" and both sides had agreed to extend a ceasefire until Sunday, May 18.

- Ceasefire -

Fighting began when India launched strikes on May 7 against what it called "terrorist camps" in Pakistan following an April attack in Indian-administered Kashmir which killed 26 people.

New Delhi blamed Islamabad for backing the militants it claimed were behind the attack -- the deadliest on civilians in Kashmir in decades. Pakistan denies the charge.

Four days of intense drone, missile and artillery exchanges ensued, leaving nearly 70 people, including dozens of civilians, dead on both sides.

Both India and Pakistan are nuclear powers and members of the IAEA, which regulates the use of nuclear weapons.

Pakistani ministers have repeatedly said the nuclear option was not on the table and that the country's nuclear governmental body was not summoned at any point during the recent conflict.

Pakistani military spokesperson Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry told reporters on Sunday that escalating conflict between the nuclear rivals was "inconceivable and sheer stupidity".

"That conflict can lead to the peril of 1.6 billion people, so in reality there is no space for war between India and Pakistan," Chaudhry said.

- Restraint calls -

Fearing further escalation, global leaders had urged restraint from the arch-enemies with US President Donald Trump announcing the surprise truce.

The ceasefire has held since the weekend, following initial claims of violations from both sides.

But Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, in a call with UN chief Antonio Guterres on Wednesday, expressed "concerns over the continued provocative and inflammatory remarks by Indian leadership, as a threat to the fragile regional peace".

India's Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said on Thursday that a key water treaty, which governs river water critical to parched Pakistan for consumption and agriculture, would remain suspended until "cross-border terrorism by Pakistan is credibly and irrevocably stopped".

His counterpart in Pakistan, Ishaq Dar, responded calling the treaty "a no-go area".

"The treaty can't be amended, nor can it be terminated by any party unless both agree," he told parliament.

Militants have stepped up operations on the Indian side of Kashmir since 2019, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist government revoked the region's limited autonomy and imposed direct rule from New Delhi.

Police in Indian-administered Kashmir meanwhile said they killed three suspected militants on Thursday in the town of Tral, in Pulwama district south of Srinagar, the region's main city.

Police also said three other suspected militants died in a gun battle with soldiers on Tuesday in the southern Kashmir valley.

Muslim-majority Kashmir is claimed in full by both India and Pakistan, which have fought several wars over the territory since their 1947 independence from British rule.

India asks IMF to reconsider Pakistan programme over 'terror funding'

Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said Friday the International Monetary Fund (IMF) should reconsider a one billion dollar loan to Pakistan alleging it was "funding terror", a move denounced by Islamabad as proof of New Delhi's desperation.

India and Pakistan last week clashed in the worst military violence in decades, killing around 70 people before agreeing a ceasefire that began Saturday.

The confrontations were sparked by an attack on tourists by gunmen in Indian-administered Kashmir last month that New Delhi accused Islamabad of backing -- a charge it denies.

"I believe a big portion of the $1 billion coming from IMF will be used for funding terror infrastructure," Singh told troops at an air force base in western India.

"I believe any economic assistance to Pakistan is nothing less than funding terror."

Despite India's objections, the IMF last week approved a loan programme review for Pakistan, unlocking a $1 billion payment which the state bank said has already been received.

A fresh $1.4 billion loan was also approved under the IMF's climate resilience fund.

India -- which also represents Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh on the IMF board -- abstained from the review vote with a statement from its finance ministry stating, "concerns over the efficacy of IMF programmes in case of Pakistan given its poor track record".

"India was the lone country which tried to stop it and it failed. It again reflects Indian frustration. Trying to criticise an institution like IMF speaks about this desperation," Pakistan's foreign ministry spokesman Shafqat Ali Khan told reporters.

Pakistan came to the brink of default in 2023, as a political crisis compounded an economic downturn and drove the nation's debt burden to terminal levels before being saved by a $7 billion bailout from the IMF which sparked further crucial loans from friendly nations.

- Removed from watchlist -

Pakistan, which has long battled militancy within its borders, has faced scrutiny over its ability to combat illicit financing, including to militant organisations and in 2022 was put on an international money-laundering watchlist.

However, the Financial Action Task Force removed Pakistan from it so-called grey-list in 2022 after "significant progress" which included charges being filed against suspected militants accused of being involved in the 2008 attacks in India's Mumbai.

Singh claimed it was "clear that in Pakistan, terrorism and their government are hand in glove with each other.

"In this situation there is a possibility that their nuclear weapons could get their way into the hands of terrorists. This is a danger not just for Pakistan but the entire world," he said.

Singh on Thursday called for Pakistan's nuclear arsenal to be put under the surveillance of the UN's atomic energy agency, with Islamabad firing back that the international community should investigate a nuclear "black market" in India.

Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy met with his Pakistani counterpart Ishaq Dar in Islamabad on Friday, where the two discussed the ceasefire, according to a statement from Pakistan's foreign ministry.

It came as the government also held ceremonies across the country to celebrate the military.

"Pakistan's Armed Forces remain fully prepared and resolutely committed to defending every inch of our territory. Any aggression will be countered," Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said while visiting troops on Thursday.

The disputed Muslim-majority region of Kashmir has been at the heart of several wars between the two neighbours, who administer separate portions of the divided territory.

Militants stepped up operations on the Indian side of Kashmir from 2019, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist government revoked the region's limited autonomy and imposed direct rule from New Delhi.