Nuclear war between India and Pakistan 'a visible reality': AJK president

World would pay a heavy price if global community does not come forward to resolve Kashmir dispute, says Masood Khan

ISLAMABAD:

Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Sardar Masood Khan has said that nuclear clash between Pakistan and India on the Kashmir dispute is "not merely an apprehension but a visible reality".

"If the international community does not come forward to resolve the Kashmir issue and end human rights violations, not only South Asia but the entire world will have to pay a heavy price," he said.

In a first-ever interactive session with the UK MP and Labour Friends of Kashmir chairman Andrew Gwynne, through video link, said that the human rights violations in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) and the frequent aggression along the Line of Control (LoC) are further aggravating the already deteriorated situation of the region which would have adverse effects on the peace and security of the whole world.

Masood warned that the war hysteria created by extremist Indian rulers and the oppression in the disputed valley is swiftly pushing the region towards a devastating war.

He appealed to the UK to come forward as an important member of the UN Security Council, and pave the way for a peaceful political and diplomatic solution to the Kashmir conflict – a sole root cause of tension between Islamabad and New Delhi.

"The UN Security Council owes the responsibility of maintaining peace and security in the world, it can intervene despite India's opposition, and take any measure including holding of a referendum to resolve the Kashmir conflict," he added.

Welcoming the launching of Labour Friends of Kashmir and the Conservative Friends of Kashmir after establishing an All Parties Parliamentary Kashmir Group in the UK Parliament, the AJK president expressed gratitude for the MPs supporting legitimate right to self-determination of the Kashmiri people, and an opening up a new window for creating awareness in the UK and Europe about the Kashmir conflict.

He maintained that the responsibility of the Security Council to resolve the Kashmir issue further grows because the presence of UN Military Observers deployed in both parts of the Jammu and Kashmir.

India, Masood also said, has been creating hurdles in the resolution of the Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UN resolutions. "The people of Pakistan, as well as Jammu and Kashmir, want a peaceful political and the diplomatic solution to the issue but India is adamant to resolve it through military means that is a war between the two countries."

Rejecting the bilateral talks with India, the AJK president said that the question of Kashmir and the UNSC resolutions on Kashmir revolves around the people of Kashmir who are fundamental party as only they will decide their political future through a UN-sponsored referendum.

Drawing a comparison between Azad Kashmir and Occupied Kashmir, he said that the occupied territory had virtually become a big military garrison and open prison for its inhabitants while the people of Azad Kashmir enjoy freedom, civil liberties and all fundamental rights and they are struggling for a prosperous life.