UN chief calls for de-escalation of Pak-India tensions

UNITED NATIONS: UN Secretary General Ban Ki moon has called for urgent de-escalation of tensions between India and Pakistan and an end to violence in the region.

The UN chief made that call during a meeting with Pakistan's permanent representative to the UN Maleeha Lodhi held at the UN Headquarters in New York.

According to a Pakistan Mission press release, the secretary general said he was saddened by the loss of lives of two Pakistani soldiers and extended condolences to the Government of Pakistan and the family of the deceased.

Briefing him about the escalating situation, Ambassador Lodhi said that India has, by its declarations and actions, created conditions that pose an imminent threat to regional and international peace and security.

She also told the secretary general that while India's claim of carrying out a 'surgical strike' across the Line of Control (LoC) was false, India had by its own admission committed aggression against Pakistan.

She said that India has provoked this crisis to divert international attention away from the indigenous Kashmiri uprising against Indian occupation.

"It was therefore essential to address the root cause of this crisis - India's continuing denial of the right to self-determination to the Kashmiri people," she said.

In this regard, The Pakistan representative asked the secretary general to play a role in bringing an end to the grave human rights violations in the Indian-occupied Kashmir (IoK).

Responding to the detailed briefing, the secretary general repeated his offer of extending his good offices to both countries which Pakistan has always welcomed but India has consistently declined.

He regretted the fact that United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) was unable to fully function due to India's non-cooperation.

The UN mission is only able to operate on the Pakistani side of the LoC as India refuses to accept its functioning on the other side and opposes its expansion.

Nevertheless, Ambassador Lodhi asked the secretary general to ensure that UNMOGIP is able to report independently about the facts of the situation on ground to the Security Council.

She told the secretary general that Pakistan had exercised maximum restraint but would respond forcefully to any acts of aggression and provocation.

"Responsibility for the escalating crisis rested entirely on India," she added.