US welcomes Kartarpur initiative, congratulates Pakistan and India

State Department says the newly-opened corridor is a step towards promoting greater religious freedom

The United States has welcomed the opening of Kartarpur Corridor – a new border crossing between India and Pakistan inaugurated on Saturday by Prime Minister Imran Khan.

The initiative was taken by the Pakistan government to facilitate the Indian followers of Baba Guru Nanak, allowing them to visit the revered Sikh Guru’s final resting place without a visa.

The 3-kilometre corridor provides visa-free access to Sikh pilgrims, allowing them to travel to Gurudwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur, where Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, spent the final years of his life.

Pakistan opens its border and its heart for Sikh community at Kartarpur

“We see this as a positive example of neighbours working together for mutual benefit,” Morgan Ortagus, spokesperson for the State Department, said in a video message on social media.

.@StateDept welcomes the opening of a new border crossing between #India & #Pakistan, the Kartarpur corridor. This corridor is a step towards promoting greater #religiousfreedom. Best wishes to the pilgrims making the crossing for the 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak’s birth. pic.twitter.com/CpkKD6ztgB

— Matthew Miller (@StateDeptSpox) November 9, 2019

“The newly-opened corridor is a step towards promoting greater religious freedom. It allows Indian Sikh pilgrims to visit Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib, an important Sikh House of worship just inside the Pakistan border,” she said.

Ortagus said the impressive project will transform a remote, three-acre site across a sensitive international boundary. “Congratulations to India and Pakistan on this initiative, and our best wishes to the pilgrims making the crossing for the 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak’s birth,” she said.