India took a strong affront over Turkey’s remarks on Kashmir on Tuesday (September 22) and slammed Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for “gross interference” in India’s internal affairs and called Erdogan’s remarks ‘completely unacceptable’.
“We have seen remarks by President of Turkey on Indian UT of Jammu and Kashmir. They constitute gross interference in India’s internal affairs and are completely unacceptable. Turkey should learn to respect the sovereignty of other nations and reflect on its policies more deeply,” TS Tirumurti, India’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, said in a tweet.
We have seen remarks by President of Turkey on Indian UT of Jammu & Kashmir. They constitute gross interference in India’s internal affairs and are completely unacceptable. Turkey should learn to respect sovereignty of other nations and reflect on its own policies more deeply.
— PR UN Tirumurti (@ambtstirumurti) September 22, 2020
The Turkish President who aspires to be the next leader of the Islamic community or the Ummah made this contentious remarks on on Kashmir on the second day of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) when he said Kashmir was still “a burning issue”. He added, “The Kashmir conflict, which is also key to the stability and peace of South Asia, is still a burning issue,”.
“We are in favour of solving this issue through dialogue within the framework of the United Nations resolutions, especially in line with the expectations of the people of Kashmir,” Erdogan added in a prerecorded message.
In a tweet sent out by embattled Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan he said, “Deeply appreciate President Erdogan once again raising his voice in support of the rights of the Kashmiri people during his address to UNGA. Turkey’s unwavering support remains a source of strength for the Kashmiris in their legitimate struggle for self determination.”
Deeply appreciate President Erdogan once again raising his voice in support of the rights of the Kashmiri people during his address to UNGA. Turkey’s unwavering support remains a source of strength for the Kashmiris in their legitimate struggle for self determination. pic.twitter.com/RIBJAIUpty
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) September 23, 2020
This is not the first time Turkey has raised the issue of Kashmir at the UN. It did the same thing last year along with Malaysia but the latter got the message loud and clear when India put sanctions on the import of palm oil and since then Malaysia has kept quite on the Kashmir issue.