News Desk |
Pakistan welcomes a major diplomatic win as the United Nations Security Council has agreed to its request to convene an emergency meeting on Friday to discuss India’s revocation of the special constitutional status of occupied Kashmir.
Speaking to the press, UNSC President Joanna Wronecka said, “The UNSC will discuss the Jammu and Kashmir situation behind closed doors most likely on August 16”, as confirmed by Geo News.
In response to a question about the schedule of the meeting, Wronecka noted that it would most probably be on Friday since the Security Council does not operate on Thursday. The UN Security Council has finally addresses the heightened violations of international laws in the occupied valley, marking almost 50 years since the Kashmir issue has been addressed by the international body.
Pakistan had urged the UN Security Council to convene an emergency meeting to discuss India’s decision of revoking Kashmir’s constitutional status, conveying its apprehensions given the disputed Himalayan territory is regarded as a nuclear flashpoint in South Asia.
In IOK, 12 days of curfew, presence of extra troops in an already heavily militarized occupied territory, sending in of RSS goons, complete communication blackout; with the example of Modi’s earlier ethnic cleansing of Muslims in Gujarat.
Reports reveal that the last UNSC reference on Indian-occupied Kashmir was issued in the UN Security Council Resolution in 1172, issued in 1998, following Pakistan’s nuclear tests. This is the first time in years that the UNSC will discuss the issue with regards to India and Pakistan.
Addressing the issue on Tuesday on PTV, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi regarded the news of Friday’s UNSC session as a “big diplomatic success” for Pakistan. Shah Mehmood Qureshi noted in his letter to the UNSC President, he had requested an emergency meeting to discuss the “illegal actions” of India that “violate UN resolutions on Kashmir.”
The Foreign Minister noted that he had also discussed Pakistan’s apprehensions of heightened tensions and escalating situations, which could jeopardize the peace and stability of South Asia.
China Supports Pakistan
On Wednesday, Beijing supported Islamabad’s appeal to the United Nations Security Council to address India’s unlawful decision to abolish the special constitutional status of the disputed region of Jammu & Kashmir. Diplomatic sources reveal that Pakistan has urged the UNSC to meet on Thursday or Friday to discuss the matter.
Read more: China says it will support Pakistan over Kashmir
However, the diplomatic sources added that France has responded to Pakistan’s request with a proposal to address the issue as “any other business” in a manner that is less formal. The decision now rests with Poland, the president of the council during August, to discuss the 15 members on an agreeable time and format.
In a letter to the UN Security Council on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi underlined Pakistan’s desire for peace, alongside its readiness to respond to any misadventure. Shah Mehmood Qureshi wrote, “Pakistan will not provoke a conflict. But India should not mistake our restraint for weakness.”
The Foreign Minister added, “If India chooses to resort again to the use of force, Pakistan will be obliged to respond, in self-defense, with all its capabilities.”
Meanwhile, Pakistan is commemorating 15th August, India’s Independence Day, as Black Day in solidarity with the Kashmiri struggle for freedom. Tweeting from his official account, Prime Minister Imran Khan questioned the silence of the international community, and highlighted the atrocities suffered by the people of Kashmir.
The UN Security Council has passed multiple resolutions in 1948 and later during the 1950s to settle the Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan.
Prime Minister Imran Khan said, “In IOK, 12 days of curfew, presence of extra troops in an already heavily militarized occupied territory, sending in of RSS goons, complete communication blackout; with the example of Modi’s earlier ethnic cleansing of Muslims in Gujarat.”
In IOK, 12 days of curfew, presence of extra troops in an already heavily militarized occupied territory, sending in of RSS goons, complete communication blackout; with the example of Modi's earlier ethnic cleansing of Muslims in Gujarat
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) August 15, 2019
The premier added, “Will world silently witness another Srebrenica-type massacre & ethnic cleansing of Muslims in IOK? I want to warn international community if it allows this to happen, it will have severe repercussions & reactions in the Muslim world setting off radicalization & cycles of violence.”
Will world silently witness another Srebrenica-type massacre & ethnic cleansing of Muslims in IOK? I want to warn international community if it allows this to happen, it will have severe repercussions & reactions in the Muslim world setting off radicalisation & cycles of violence
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) August 15, 2019
The UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres has urged both India and Pakistan to refrain from undertaking any measures aimed at altering the special status of the Indian occupied Himalayan valley. Guterres also voiced his concerns over reports of restrictions emerging from occupied Kashmir.
Read more: UN concerned over human rights situation in Indian Occupied Kashmir
The UN Security Council has passed multiple resolutions in 1948 and later during the 1950s to settle the Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan. One resolution states that a plebiscite must be held to allow the Kashmiris to decide their own future. Another UNSC resolution urges both India and Pakistan to “refrain from making any statements and from doing or causing to be done or permitting any acts which might aggravate the situation.”