Although US President Joe Biden has not yet phoned Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan since taking over the US administration in January, the new US Secretary of State Antony Blinken did speak with his counterpart, Shah Mahmood Qureshi last week, and reiterated the US desire to strengthen ties with Pakistan.
As the government of the US changes, Pakistan's foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said he hopes the Biden administration will not ignore the reality of “disputed Kashmir” which has been under “military siege for the past 18 months”.
The minister said that India claims Jammu and Kashmir is a matter for its internal affairs – but it is not.
“If it were an internal issue then why was it on the agenda of several dialogues [between India & Pakistan] while the UN Security Council has held three discussions on it in the wake of illegal Indian actions in the valley on 5 August 2019,” Qureshi asked.
The statement comes a day after the US Department of State congratulated India's Narendra Modi-led government for restoring high-speed 4G services to Jammu and Kashmir but forgot to refer to the area as being “disputed”.
High-speed internet services had been suspended after India revoked the ‘temporary' special status of the region in August 2019 on the grounds that social media platforms can be misused to disrupt law and order.
Pakistan has been making attempts every now and then to discuss Kashmir at the United Nations Security…
