Marco Rubio spoke to National Security Advisors from India and Pakistan on Tuesday (local time) and urged them to keep lines of communication open and avoid escalation.

The US urged India and Pakistan to work together to de-escalate tensions and avoid an expected clash, after militants last week killed dozens of people in the Indian-controlled portion of the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.

India said it has banned the import of goods originating from or transiting via Pakistan as diplomatic tensions between the two nuclear-armed nations flared in the wake of a deadly attack on tourists in disputed Kashmir region.