GOVT HITS OUT AT UNGA CHIEF OVER VALLEY REMARKS

NEW DELHI: India on Friday described as “unwarranted” and “regrettable” the remarks by UN General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir that Pakistan should raise the Kashmir issue more forcefully and that all parties should refrain from steps which affect the status of Jammu and Kashmir.

Bozkir, a former Turkish diplomat who assumed office last September, made the comments at a press interaction with Pakistan foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in Islamabad on Thursday. Bozkir, the first Turkish national to preside over the General Assembly, was on an official visit to Pakistan during which he also met Prime Minister Imran Khan.

“We express our strong opposition to the unwarranted references made with respect to the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir by the President of the United Nations General Assembly (PGA) Volkan Bozkir during his recent visit to Pakistan,” said external affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi. Bozkir’s remarks that “Pakistan is ‘duty bound’ to raise the Kashmir issue at the UN more strongly are unacceptable... and surely diminishes his standing on the global platform,” he added.