India strongly rejected the recent statement of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in favor of resolving the issue of Kashmir according to UN resolutions. The Indian government also formally protested the statement with the Turkish envoy, terming it as unacceptable.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) again asserted that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India and condemned Erdogan's statement.
"Such uncalled-for comments on internal affairs of India are rejected by us. The Turkish ambassador has been strongly protested to. Such comments questioning India's sovereignty and territorial integrity are unacceptable. Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India," MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a weekly press briefing.
This Indian government response was exactly a week after Erdogan's remarks, made during his Pakistan trip, where he had a meeting with Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif.
Erdogan had stayed away from bringing up the Kashmir issue for almost two years, never mentioning it in any of his public utterances at global platforms such as the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
But on February 13, while speaking to the media along with Pakistan's Prime Minister, Erdogan reaffirmed his position, urging India and Pakistan to have a dialogue on the issue.
"The issue of Kashmir should be dealt with in accordance with the UN resolution through dialogue and keeping in mind the hopes of the people of Kashmir. Our state and our country, as in the past, stands in support of our Kashmiri brothers today," Erdogan said.
Responding to these comments, MEA spokesperson Jaiswal noted that Erdogan must concentrate on Pakistan's contribution to cross-border terrorism instead of issuing statements on India's internal affairs.
"Rather than issuing a statement on the internal affairs of another nation, it would have been more befitting to mention Pakistan's ongoing use of cross-border terrorism against India, which is the greatest threat to the people of Jammu and Kashmir," Jaiswal claimed.
Besides, reacting to a query regarding Pakistan's Parliament approving a resolution calling for India to conduct a plebiscite in Kashmir, Jaiswal reiterated India's strong stance on the issue.
"Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India and will always be so. There should be no doubt or confusion about this," he asserted.
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