Pakistan reacted to a statement by India’s Ministry of External Affairs on the map of Jammu and Kashmir on Monday, calling New Delhi’s assertion “baseless” and accusing India of making an unfounded claim.
The statement from Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs came a day after MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal clarified India’s position on the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, following India’s support for an African Union resolution seeking to “rebalance” the world map.
In a statement, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India had voted in favour of the map, stressing that the vote was based on the “underlying principle of promoting equal-area cartographic representation. “We also highlighted that the resolution does not constitute endorsement of any specific map, projection or depiction of national boundaries,” the MEA said on Sunday. Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesperson Sajjad Haider Khan on Monday categorically rejected what he called “India’s baseless assertions” regarding the status of Jammu and Kashmir, saying they were contrary to internationally recognised facts. Pakistani statement further said, “India’s so-called official maps and unilateral claims of sovereignty have no bearing on the status of the disputed territory.
“India’s unilateral actions and continued illegal occupation cannot alter the internationally recognized disputed status of Jammu and Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir dispute remains one of the oldest unresolved, internationally recognized disputes on the agenda of the United Nations Security Council. The relevant UN resolutions stipulate that its final disposition must be made in accordance with the relevant Security Council resolutions and the will of the Kashmiri people, expressed through a free and impartial plebiscite under UN auspices,” the Pakistani statement read.
On Sunday, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that India voted in favour of the resolution and, in its explanation of vote, emphasised the underlying principle of promoting equal-area cartographic representation.
