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India lodged a strong protest against Turkish President Erdogan’s Kashmir remarks during his visit to Pakistan and said that such comments on India’s internal matters are unacceptable.
India slams Turkish President Erdogan over Kashmir remarks (AP Image)
India on Friday outrightly rejected Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s call for the Kashmir issue to be addressed as per the UN resolution, and said that the country has lodged a strong protest with the Turkish envoy over the objectionable remarks.
The Ministry of External Affairs termed Erdogan’s comments unacceptable and said that J&K is an integral part of India.
“We reject such objectionable comments on matters that are eternal to India. We have lodged a strong protest with the Turkish ambassador. Such unwarranted statements on India’s territorial integrity and sovereignty are unacceptable. Jammu and Kashmir are integral parts of India,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at the weekly press briefing.
#WATCH | On the issue of Türkiye President Erdogan’s recent comments over Kashmir, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal says, “We reject such objectionable comments on matters that are eternal to India. We have lodged a strong protest with the Turkish ambassador. Such unwarranted… pic.twitter.com/QZvmEz9Ewc— ANI (@ANI) February 21, 2025
The MEA’s response came a week after Erdogan’s remarks which came during his visit to Islamabad where he met Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Erdogan had maintained since on the Kashmir issue for nearly two years during which he did not mention the matter in his public remarks at forums such as UNGA.
What Had Erdogan Said On Kashmir?
On February 13, the Turkish President, with the Pakistan PM by his side, said that the Kashmir issue should be resolved through dialogue between India and Pakistan.
“The Kashmir issue should be addressed according to the UN resolution through dialogue and keeping in mind the aspirations of the people of Kashmir. Our state and our nation, as in the past, stands in solidarity with our Kashmiri brothers today,” he had said during a media interaction.
Reacting to his comments, the MEA spokesperson said that Erdogan, instead of making remarks on India’s internal issues, should have focused on Pakistan’s policy of backing cross-border terrorism against India.
“Instead of commenting on internal affairs of another country, it would have been better if Pakistan’s policy of using cross-border terrorism against India, which remains the biggest threat to the people of Jammu and Kashmir, has had been called out,” Jaiswal said.
Responding to another query regarding Pakistan’s Parliament passing a resolution urging India to carry out a plebiscite in Kashmir, Jaiswal said that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India and will always remain so.
“There should be no doubt or confusion about this,” he said.