No change in Kashmir policy, US assures Pakistan
WASHINGTON : The US has assured Pakistan that its position on the Kashmir dispute remains unchanged and that Washington continues to regard the region as a disputed territory requiring a settlement between Pakistan and India.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the assurance followed the controversial remarks by US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor on Kashmir during a visit to Srinagar on Aug 19.
According to media reports, Islamabad sought clarification from Washington on whether Gor’s remarks signalled a policy shift. US officials told their Pakistani interlocutors there had been “no change in our position” and that Washington continued to regard Kashmir as a dispute requiring resolution between Pakistan and India.
The reports also pointed to President Trump’s previous offer to help resolve the Kashmir dispute, saying the offer reflected Washington’s view that the issue remained unresolved.
Gor’s remarks had caused concern in Islamabad. Pakistan subsequently protested the remarks and summoned the US chargé d’affaires in Islamabad, saying the ambassador’s comments were inconsistent with its understanding of the longstanding US position and relevant UN Security Council resolutions.
The issue was discussed during a media interaction in Washington involving Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Kashmir Rana Muhammad Qasim Noon and Pakistan’s Ambassador to the US Rizwan Saeed Sheikh.
Mr Noon reaffirmed Pakistan’s political, diplomatic and moral support for the Kashmiri people and said lasting peace in South Asia could not be achieved without resolving the dispute in accordance with UNSC resolutions. He said the dispute could not be treated as settled.
He urged the international community to pay greater attention to allegations of human rights violations in India-held Kashmir, citing concerns over disappearances, detentions, demographic changes and efforts to alter Kashmir’s political and cultural identity. Mr Noon also linked the dispute to the broader security situation in South Asia, arguing that the presence of three nuclear-armed states underscored the importance of resolving outstanding disputes peacefully.
Similarly, Ambassador Sheikh said Kashmir remained part of the international and UN framework and that its peaceful resolution was essential to regional and wider international peace and stability. The embassy later issued a statement reflecting these positions.
