Key points
- Most challenging issues can be resolved peacefully: UN chief
- Guterres strongly urges both sides to exercise maximum restraint
- Pakistan allows UN observers to monitor the LoC while India does not
UNITED NATIONS: Emphasising that he remains “deeply concerned” about the escalating tensions between India and Pakistan following last week’s incident in Indian-Occupied Kashmir, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres Monday offered to back “any initiatives, acceptable to both parties, that promote de-escalation and the resumption of dialogue.”
“The Secretary-General reaffirms his firm belief that even the most challenging issues can be resolved peacefully through meaningful and constructive dialogue,” the secretary general’s deputy spokesperson, Farhan Aziz Haq, said in an e-mail response to questions from APP correspondent.
De-escalation
“He stands ready to support any initiatives, acceptable to both parties that promote de-escalation and the resumption of dialogue,” Haq added.
According to media reports, 26 people were killed in Pahalgam incident. In his response on Monday, the deputy spokesperson said that UN chief conveyed “his solidarity with the families of the victims and underscores the importance of accountability and justice.
At the same time, Guterres strongly urged both governments “to exercise maximum restraint and avoid any escalation”.
Unilateral suspension
In the wake of the incident, India announced a series of measures targeting Pakistan that include unilaterally suspending the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), the closure of border crossing linking the two countries, the expulsion of diplomats and an order for some Pakistani visa holders to leave within 48 hours.
Pakistan, which firmly denied the country’s role in the incident, retaliated by suspending all visas issued to Indian nationals under an exemption scheme with immediate effect, as well as expelling some of the Indian diplomats and closing its airspace to Indian flights.
About the role of the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP), which monitors the Line of Control (LoC), Haq said it has no presence in the area where the incident happened”.
But, he added, the group “continues to implement its mandate of observing developments pertaining to and supervising the strict observance of the 1971 ceasefire along the Line of Control.”
While Pakistan allows UN observers to monitor the LoC, India does not.
