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Will discuss J&K issue with Narendra Modi, hints Donald Trump
Trump indicated that he might discuss the issue when he would be meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the weekend, on the sidelines of the upcoming G7 Summit in Biarritz, France.
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday repeated his Kashmir mediation offer, saying he “will do the best I can, [to help] to mediate or do something”, even as more countries backed New Delhi’s stance on Wednesday that the issue was a bilateral one between India and Pakistan.
Trump indicated that he might discuss the issue when he would be meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the weekend, on the sidelines of the upcoming G7 Summit in Biarritz, France.
The US President also sought to portray Kashmir issue as a result of differences between Hindus and Muslims. “You have the Hindus. And you have the Muslims [in that region]. I wouldn’t say they get along so great. That’s what you have right now,” the US President told reporters.
It’s a “complicated situation,” he added. “A lot has to do with religion.”
Trump’s comments came as France, one of the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, said that discussions on the Kashmir dispute must be held between India and Pakistan alone.
French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, in a telephonic conversation with his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Tuesday, “recalled France’s constant position on Kashmir” that it is up to the two countries, under the framework of their bilateral political dialogue, to resolve the dispute.
France also urged both sides to show restraint and abstain from any measure likely to aggravate tensions, a statement by its ministry said.
Tensions between India and Pakistan spiked after India nullified provisions of Article 370 of the Constitution to withdraw Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and bifurcated it into two Union Territories. India has said the move is an internal matter while Pakistan on Tuesday said it would approach the International Court of Justice to challenge the move.
The government of Bangladesh on Wednesday also backed India, saying the Article 370 move was an internal issue of India. The statement came as Indian external affairs minister S Jaishankar concluded his three-day visit to Dhaka.
“Bangladesh maintains that the abrogation of Article 370 by the Indian government is an internal issue of India.
Bangladesh has always advocated, as a matter of principle, that maintaining regional peace and stability as well as development should be a priority for all countries,” the statement
said.
Separately, Russia and India on Wednesday underlined support to each other on principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity and non-interference of third parties.
“The longstanding position of both sides on importance of their bilateral consultations and mutual support for principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity and non-interference of third parties was reiterated,” a statement by the external affairs ministry said on Wednesday.
The statement came following a meeting between national security adviser Ajit Doval and his Russian counterpart Nikolai Patrushev. The reference of non-interference by third parties is seen as Russia’s support of India’s position on Jammu and Kashmir, though no third country was named in the MEA statement.
