'Want to resolve all issues, including Kashmir': Pakistan to India
What's the story
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has offered a peace overture to India, stressing the need for dialogue on all issues, including Kashmir.
He made the statement during a special session of the Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK) Assembly in Muzaffarabad on "Kashmir Solidarity Day."
Sharif urged India to move beyond its August 5, 2019 stance when Article 370 was revoked, changing Jammu and Kashmir's status.
Advocacy and criticism
Sharif advocates for dialogue, criticizes India's military buildup
He urged India to honor commitments made to the United Nations and participate in dialogue.
Sharif emphasized the significance of dialogue as mentioned in the Lahore Declaration of 1999, which was signed during then-Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's visit to Pakistan.
He also condemned India's military build-up, saying that stockpiling weapons won't bring peace to the region. Rather, he suggested peace is the key to progress.
Support reiterated
Sharif reiterates Pakistan's support for Kashmiri self-determination
Sharif reiterated Pakistan's support for Kashmiri self-determination under UN resolutions.
He said "the only solution to the Kashmir issue is the right of self-determination under the UNSC resolution."
President Asif Ali Zardari and Sharif have demanded international intervention to let Kashmiris decide their future on their own, while military leaders in Pakistan have promised support for Kashmir's people.
POK "prime minister" Anwarul Haq also stressed regional peace hinges on Kashmir issue resolution.
India's position
India's stance on Jammu and Kashmir
India has always maintained that J&K and Ladakh remain an integral part of the country.
The India-Pakistan relationship deteriorated sharply after India airstrikes a terrorist camp in Balakot, Pakistan, after the Pulwama attack in 2019.
In December, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said India wants to maintain good relations with all its neighbors, including Pakistan. However, he added that these ties should be "free of terrorism."