look news india
Pakistan's newly elected Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif is currently in Saudi Arabia on his first foreign visit. However, Saudi Arabia has shocked Pakistan on the Kashmir issue. In the conversation, Saudi clearly said that Kashmir is a bilateral issue between India and Pakistan. Along with this, Saudi advised PM Shahbaz to resolve the matter by talking to India. Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince in a statement stressed the importance of dialogue between New Delhi and Islamabad to resolve Kashmir and other outstanding issues.
Discussion on regional issues including Kashmir
This was said in a joint statement issued a day after an official meeting between Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and Saudi ruler Prince Mohammed bin Salman at Al-Safa Palace in Mecca. According to the statement, their discussions focused on strengthening brotherly relations between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and finding ways to enhance cooperation in various fields. The statement said they also discussed regional issues including Kashmir.
talks between pakistan and india
Both sides stressed the importance of dialogue between Pakistan and India to resolve outstanding issues between the two countries, especially the Jammu and Kashmir dispute, to maintain peace and stability in the region. New Delhi has always maintained that Kashmir is a bilateral issue between India and Pakistan and hence there is no question of interference by any third party.
Relations between New Delhi and Riyadh
While both India and Pakistan have long standing friendly relations with Arab countries including Saudi Arabia. Relations between New Delhi and Riyadh have improved significantly. Saudi Arabia has taken a balanced stance on Jammu and Kashmir, while the Kingdom expressed concern over the abrogation of Article 370 by India in August 2019, but did not explicitly condemn the action. Instead, it was considered an internal matter of New Delhi.
Insistence to convince India
In 2019, Pakistan urged the US to persuade India to initiate talks on a peaceful resolution of the Kashmir issue. This happened when the then US President Donald Trump started mediation between the two countries on the Kashmir issue. However, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar made it clear that 'any discussion on this issue, if necessary, will be taken up only with Pakistan and only bilaterally.' India has repeatedly told Pakistan that Jammu and Kashmir was, is and will always be an integral part of India. India desires normal neighborly relations with Pakistan in an environment free from terror, hostility and violence.