‘Any discussion over Kashmir to be with Pakistan only’
India today told the United States that any discussion on Kashmir, if at all warranted, will only be with Pakistan.
"Have conveyed to American counterpart @SecPompeo this morning in clear terms that any discussion on Kashmir, if at all warranted, will only be with Pakistan and only bilaterally," India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar tweeted after a meeting with American Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit in Bangkok.
Jaishankar's Twitter post came hours after US President Donald Trump said he would "certainly intervene" if "they" asked.
Trump, while answering a question from a reporter at the White House about his earlier offer to mediate on Kashmir issue, said: "If they wanted somebody to intervene and I spoke to Pakistan about that… I spoke frankly with India about it… if they wanted me to, I would certainly intervene".
In July, Trump had made a stunning claim that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had requested him to intervene in the Kashmir issue during a meeting in June on the sideline of G20 Summit in Osaka, Japan.
Trump had made the claim, which was denied strongly by India, in response to an appeal by visiting Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan in joint remarks at the White House.
India denied Modi had ever asked Trump to mediate and reiterated its stance that all issues with Pakistan can only be resolved bilaterally and after Pakistan stops supporting terrorism.
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