In a strong rebuke to Pakistan over the Kashmir issue, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, speaking at the 79th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session on Saturday, emphasized that the only matter to resolve between India and Pakistan is the return of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) to India.
Responding to Pakistan’s continued assertions on Kashmir, Jaishankar said, "Pakistan's policy of cross-border terrorism will never succeed, and it can have no expectation of impunity. The issue to be resolved is the vacation of illegally occupied Indian territory by Pakistan."
Jaishankar condemned Pakistan's "harbouring of terrorists" and highlighted how the country’s obsession with terrorism has radicalized its own society. "When this polity instills such fanaticism among its people, its GDP can only be measured in terms of radicalization, and its exports in the form of terrorism. Today, we see the ills it sought to visit on others consume its own society," he remarked, calling it a case of "karma."
The minister extended India’s support for the UNGA's theme, “Leaving No One Behind,” while addressing the global challenges posed by the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and the conflict in Gaza. He urged the global community to respect international law, stating, “Respect for international law and commitments are foremost in that regard.”
Jaishankar also emphasized that the UN must step up to improve global conditions, warning, "If we carry on like this, the state of the world will only get worse."
Jaishankar's statements came a day after Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif raised the Kashmir issue at the UNGA, accusing India of "military expansion" and demanding the reversal of the 2019 abrogation of Article 370. In a sharp response, India’s First Secretary to the UN, Bhavika Mangalanandan, criticized Pakistan's reliance on cross-border terrorism, stating, "Pakistan has long employed terrorism as a weapon against its neighbors."
Mangalanandan reminded the assembly of Pakistan’s history of attacks on India's Parliament, Mumbai, and other significant targets, calling out Pakistan’s “audacity” to challenge the world’s largest democracy.
The diplomatic exchange underscored the deep tensions between the two neighbors, with India reiterating its stance on the return of PoK and the abandonment of Pakistan’s attachment to terrorism.
