Sharif rakes up Kashmir, but offers to talk as well

NEW DELHI: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday made a fresh offer of peace talks to India even as he called for an independent inquiry and a UN fact-finding

NEW DELHI: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday made a fresh offer of peace talks to India even as he called for an independent inquiry and a UN fact-finding mission into rights violations in Kashmir.

HT Image

Against the backdrop of tensions triggered by the terror attack on an Indian Army camp in Uri, Sharif used his speech at the UN General Assembly to call for a “serious and sustained dialogue” for the peaceful resolution of all outstanding disputes, especially Kashmir.

However, some of his remarks were bound to anger New Delhi — such as his description of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani, whose killing sparked the current unrest in Kashmir, as a “young leader murdered by Indian forces” who has become the “symbol of the latest Kashmiri Intifada”.

Sharif dwelt at length on Kashmir during his speech, and demanded an “independent inquiry into the extrajudicial killings” and a “UN fact-finding mission to investigate brutalities perpetrated by the Indian occupying forces, so that those guilty of these atrocities are punished”.

He said Pakistan will share with the UN Secretary-General a dossier with “evidence” of rights violations. He also contended that a new generation of Kashmiris had “risen spontaneously against India’s illegal occupation” and said Pakistan supports the Kashmiri people’s demand for self-determination.

At the same time, Sharif also made a fresh offer of dialogue.

“Confrontation should not be our destiny in South Asia. Pakistan wants peace with India. I have gone the extra mile to achieve this, repeatedly offering a dialogue to address all outstanding issues,” he said.

“But India has posed unacceptable pre-conditions to engage in a dialogue. Let us be clear: talks are no favour to Pakistan. Talks are in the interest of both countries. They are essential to resolve our differences, especially the Jammu and Kashmir dispute, and to avert the danger of any escalation.”

He said peace and normalisation between the two neighbours could not be achieved without resolving the Kashmir issue.