UN chief ready to assist in resolving Kashmir dispute
Ban Ki supports engagement of Kashmiris in dialogue process

INP

NEW YORK – UN chief Ban Ki moon has expressed readiness to engage with India and Pakistan in resolving the Indian-held Jammu Kashmir issue if requested by both and asked them to resume talks to reach an agreement that would serve their security interests as well as that of the region.

“As I have stated in the past, if both the countries request it, I am ready to engage further to assist in resolving this issue,” the secretary general said. Reiterating that peace in Jammu Kashmir can be achieved only through dialogue; Ban called on the two countries to resume discussions and said that an agreement on Kashmir would serve the security interests of both countries as well as that of the region.

“I once again encourage both the governments to resume discussions and identify confidence-building measures that will allow them to come to an agreement on Kashmir, which will serve the security interests of both countries as well as of the region,” Ban told an Indian news agency. He said that the Kashmiris need to be engaged in the process and their rights must also be respected at all times.

He said that he as well as other senior officials has been in close contact with authorities from both the Pakistan and the India in recent weeks, given the tensions between the two countries when violence escalated along the Line of Control (LoC) in October. “I am saddened by the loss of lives throughout this conflict, including this fall when civilians were killed and thousands more were displaced. I am convinced that peace and stability in Kashmir can be achieved only through dialogue,” Ban said.

Adviser on National Security and Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz had written a letter to UN chief on the border tensions with India and sought the UN’s intervention, stepping up its attempts to internationalise the Kashmir issue. India had called off the talks between the foreign secretaries slated in August after Pakistan’s envoy in Delhi held talks with Kashmiri separatists just before the parleys. India had told Pakistan bluntly to choose between a Pakistan-India dialogue and hobnobbing with the separatists.

Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk

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