ISLAMABAD: On Tuesday, Prime Minister Imran Khan said that Pakistan would not hold talks with India until New Delhi modifies its decision of scrapping the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.
Under Article 370 India cancelled the special status of Jammu and Kashmir on August 5, 2019, and bifurcated it into two Union territories.
“Unless India retreats from the steps taken on August 5, the Pakistani government will not talk to India at all,” Khan said while responding to questions from the public during a live broadcast session.
Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Foreign Minister, earlier said that no talks were currently taking place with India but discussions could be held if New Delhi revised its policy concerning Kashmir and granted relief to the people of Kashmir.
“Jammu and Kashmir cannot be an internal issue of India as it is on the agenda of the UN and there are several Security Council resolutions on it,” he said while addressing a news conference in Islamabad.
India has frequently said Jammu and Kashmir is an essential part of India and the country is capable of solving its own problems.
New Delhi has told Islamabad that it wants normal neighbourly relations with it in an environment free of terror, hostility and violence.
After India announced withdrawing special powers of Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcation of the state into two union territories in August 2019, Indo-Pak relations worsened. India has reported that the problem related to Article 370 of the Indian Constitution was completely an internal matter of the country.
Though, lately, there has been some development when the two countries agreed in February to revive peace on the Line of Control. It is said that the opposing officials have been communicating through backchannel diplomacy to soothe tension.
Imran Khan also reacted to several inquiries about domestic issues and defended the performance of his government which came to power in August 2018.
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