The Kashmir issue should be resolved according to the relevant UN resolutions, Turkey has said. The Turkish stand appeared in a joint statement issued at the end of a two-day visit by Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan to Turkey on the invitation of Turkish President RecepTayyipErdogan. Khan’s meeting with Erdogan was followed by delegation-level talks.
The two leaders expressed a commitment to further enhance bilateral relations in all fields, according to the joint statement shared with the media by Khan’s office in Islamabad.
The statement said the two countries “underscored the need for resolution of the issue of Jammu and Kashmir through a sustained dialogue process and in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions”.
India has maintained that Kashmir is a bilateral issue with Pakistan and that third parties have no role in it.
Khan and Erdogan also “recognised Turkish support for Pakistan’s membership in the Nuclear Suppliers’ Group based on non-discriminatory criteria, and reaffirmed that Pakistan’s adherence to the NSG guidelines and participation in the NSG would strengthen global non-proliferation objectives”.
The two nations acknowledged that sustainable peace and stability in Afghanistan could be achieved through reconciliation of all segments of Afghan society with support of regional countries and the international community.
They noted their expanding defence cooperation and expressed their resolve to further strengthening the existing economic, trade and commercial relations.
The two countries called on the international community to support the Palestinian people in realising their quest for an independent and sovereign state of Palestine on the basis of the 1967 borders with Jerusalem as its capital.
Meanwhile, Imran Khan pitched for friendly-relations with India while opining that the “basic problem” between the two countries is Kashmir.
“We are trying to have a dialogue, trying to move towards a friendly relationship with India…Pakistan obviously wants stability because we want economic progress,” Khan remarked during a joint press conference held with Turkish President RecepTayyipErdogan in Ankara on Friday.
“We’ve had a standoff with India where India refuses to talk to Pakistan under the pretext that until Pakistan stops terrorism, India will not talk to us. It’s a bizarre situation, where we feel that how can you move forward if there’s no dialogue. But the basic problem between Pakistan and India is Kashmir,” he added.