India also has a long-standing policy of refusing to allow foreign mediation when it comes to the status of Muslim-majority Kashmir - a disputed region claimed by both India and Pakistan in its entirety - which has been at the center of the latest conflict with Pakistan and which India regards as a strictly internal matter.

People in Kashmir say they are relieved but uneasy after India and Pakistan agreed to a ceasefire. The deal was intended to defuse the worst military confrontation between the two countries in decades.

By Saurabh Sharma, Tariq Maqbool and Aftab Ahmed AMRITSAR, India/ MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan (Reuters) -A ceasefire between India and Pakistan was holding on Sunday after both sides blamed the other for initial violations,