It would be euphemistic to call it a thaw between the two neighbouring countries but Pakistan has shown keenness to address the Kashmir conflict through a dialogue with India.
However, he also accused India of accumulating weapons, arguing that this would not promote peace in the region.
According to reports, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed his peace initiative during a special session of the Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK) Assembly in Muzaffarabad, coinciding with Kashmir Solidarity Day, an annual event to express support for the Kashmiri people.
“We seek to resolve all issues, Kashmir included, through talks,” he was quoted as saying.
He urged India to fulfill its commitments to the UN. He was referring to the scrapping of Article 370 that revoked Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and split the state into two Union Territories.
The relationship between the two nations strained even more following India’s abrogation of Article 370.
New Delhi has consistently asserted that Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh “was, is, and shall forever” remain an integral part of India.
Sharif said that the path to resolving ties between the two countries lay in dialogue, as outlined in the Lahore Declaration of 1999, signed during then-Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s visit to Pakistan.
India has always made it clear that it desires normal relations with Pakistan and an atmosphere free of terrorism.
He advised India to adopt a “wise” approach, saying that peace was non-negotiable. He maintained that “the right to self-determination” was the only way to resolve the Kashmir view, which was in line with the UN resolution.
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