Modi cancels Turkey visit over Ankara's stance on occupied Kashmir

Ankara's support for Islamabad on occupied Kashmir issue and FATF irks New Delhi

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has cancelled a two-day trip to Turkey after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticised India’s illegal August 5 Kashmir move during his United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) address.



The Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) has been under a draconian clampdown since August 5, when New Delhi nixed Article-370 of the Indian constitution, which conferred a special status on the disputed region.

In his UNGA address in New York, Erdogan had said the stability and prosperity of South Asia cannot be separated from the IOK issue, which awaits a solution for 72 years.

“In order for the Kashmiri people to look at a safe future together with their Pakistani and Indian neighbours, it is imperative to solve the problem through dialogue and on the basis of justice and equity, but not through collision,” Erdogan had stressed.

Erdogan's strong backing of Islamabad's position on IOK and condemnation of widespread human rights violations by India did not go well in New Delhi.

Apart from the UNGA, Erdogan also raised the Kashmir issue and backed Pakistan at the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) meet in Paris, following which New Delhi decided to give a cold shoulder to Ankara, Indian media reported.

Standing with Pakistan on Kashmir is Turkey's duty: Turkish parliament 

Modi’s trip to Ankara would have been his first solo visit. He had last visited Turkey during the G20 in Antalya in 2015. Erdogan also paid a two-day visit to India in July 2018.

 

This story originally appeared on News18.