China, Turkey likely to skip G20 summit in IIOJK

Pakistan is hoping that Saudi Arabia and Indonesia may follow suit


Kamran Yousaf May 18, 2023
A man paints a wall with the G20 logo in the region's main city of Srinagar. PHOTO: AFP

ISLAMABAD:

China and Turkey are unlikely to attend the controversial G20 meeting on tourism in Srinagar in a move that would be seen as some diplomatic victory for Pakistan, which is opposing Indian attempts to portray the normalcy in the disputed region.

India, the current president of G20, is set to host the meeting on tourism from May 22 to May 24. It is going to be the first major global event in the disputed region particularly after India unilaterally revoked the special status of the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) in August 2019.

G-20 comprises rich nations plus the European Union. The intergovernmental bloc accounts for 80 per cent of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP).

Countries which have close ties with Pakistan are part of the grouping. Those include China, Turkey, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia.

Since India decided to host the tourism meeting in Srinagar, Pakistan launched a diplomatic offensive to counter the New Delhi’s move. Pakistan’s efforts have achieved partial success as China and Turkey are believed to be not sending their delegates to the Srinagar meeting, according to official sources.

Pakistan is hoping that Saudi Arabia and Indonesia may follow suit. Similarly, other countries given the sensitivity of the issue are only sending their diplomats based in New Delhi to the event.

There has been no official confirmation from the foreign office.

However, Pakistan’s former ambassador to India Abdul Basit said his sources confirmed that China and Turkey would stay away from the G20 meeting in Srinagar.

Also read: India boosts security for G20 meeting in IIOJK after attacks

“My sources tell me China and Turkey are not attending G20 meeting in Srinagar. Almost all other countries are sending their Delhi-based diplomats to the meeting. I expect Saudi Arabia and Indonesia to also show solidarity with Kashmiris,” Basit wrote in a tweet.

While Indian government is trying to show all is well in the disputed territory, independent experts believe that this can’t brush the issue under the carpet.

Fernand de Varennes, the United Nations special rapporteur on minority issues, on Monday issued a statement accusing India of seeking to normalise the “brutal and repressive denial of democratic and other rights of Kashmiri Muslims and minorities” by holding a G20 meeting in the disputed region.

He said the situation in Kashmir “should be decried and condemned and not pushed under the rug and ignored”.

“The government of India is seeking to normalise what some have described as a military occupation by instrumentalising a G20 meeting and portray an international ‘seal of approval’,” Varennes said in the statement shared on Twitter.

The UN expert said “massive human rights violations” have been reported in Kashmir since it came under New Delhi’s direct rule. “These included torture, extrajudicial killings, denial of political participation rights of Kashmiri Muslims and minorities,” he said.

“The G20 is unwittingly providing a veneer of support to the façade of normalcy at a time when massive human rights violations, illegal and arbitrary arrests, political persecution, restrictions, and even suppression of free media and human rights defenders continue to escalate,” he added.

COMMENTS (2)

nitin | 1 year ago | Reply baseless allegations by Pak media better Pak should understand the geo facts and if possible attack on India our forces will give a tight slap as we did previously.
test | 1 year ago | Reply Pakistan hopes that China Turkey Saudi Arabia Indonesia and Nigeria will skip g20 summit in IIOJK and we are thankful for that. The only reason we didn t condemned Russia is because West did nothing for Kashmir and Kashmiris. From the very beginning united nation did nothing to protect the kashmir and kashmiris right of independence even when it has united nations security council resolutions regarding the dispute and referendum. I don t have any concern if Russian soldiers kill ukrainian soldiers or people or whatever or even if Russia invades europe and kill european people or occupy them because I would only suggest silence just like the western countries did with Kashmir cause. And finally I will give naval bases drone bases military bases and air bases to China so that China destroys the western world with the help of Pakistan and our silence will cause massive destruction of west at the hands of China because we will approve the destruction just like western countries did to Kashmir.
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