ISLAMABAD - Adviser on National Security and Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz has sent a letter to Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, on the security situation along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir and the Working Boundary between Pakistan and India, owing to deliberate and unprovoked violations of the ceasefire agreement and cross-border firing by the Indian forces over the past weeks.
The letter also underlines the need to resolve the issue of Jammu and Kashmir in accordance with the resolutions of the UN Security Council, and recalls the role and responsibility of the UN and the international community in that regard.
The move came due to the current security situation along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir and the Working Boundary between Pakistan and India, after deliberate and unprovoked violations of the ceasefire agreement and cross-border firing by the Indian forces over the past weeks.
In his letter, Sartaj Aziz pointed out that the Jammu and Kashmir dispute is one of the longest outstanding issues on the agenda of the UN Security Council.
He said that the UN Security Council in its resolutions had promised holding of a plebiscite in occupied Kashmir, under the auspices of the UN, granting right to self-determination to the people of Kashmir and these resolutions are still valid though unimplemented to date.
The advisor said that for decades, Pakistan has been reminding the UN and the international community to fulfill that promise, in the interest of durable peace and security in the region.
Sartaj Aziz said that in his address to the UN General Assembly on 26 September, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had also emphasized that the core issue of Jammu and Kashmir needed to be resolved.
This is the responsibility of the international community. We cannot draw a veil on the issue of Kashmir, until it is addressed in accordance with the wishes of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. The prime minister had also reiterated Pakistan's readiness to work for resolution of this issue through negotiations.
The advisor said that unfortunately India has adopted a policy that runs counter to its stated desire to engage in a serious bilateral dialogue with Pakistan. He said that India cancelled, unilaterally and without any plausible justification, the Foreign Secretary level talks that were scheduled to be held on August 25th this year.
Sartaj Aziz said that India has now escalated the situation along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir and the Working Boundary. Persistent shelling and firing by Indian forces has resulted in heavy civilian casualties on the Pakistan side.
The letter said that while exercising its right to self-defence, Pakistan has exercised utmost restraint and responsibility in responding to these provocations.
The Government of Pakistan sincerely hopes that better sense would prevail on the Indian side to prevent the situation from spiraling out of control.
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