Srinagar: Despite reservations of three countries — Russia, Iran and Afghanistan, Pakistan succeeded in including Kashmir in the ‘Islamabad Declaration’ at the 1st Speakers’ Conference of six countries which concluded at Islamabad on Sunday.
The conference, participated by Afghanistan, China, Iran, Pakistan, Russia and Turkey, called for establishing a joint mechanism to cope with the challenges of terrorism and security besides promoting the inter-region connectivity.
The Kashmir dispute was mentioned at serial number 19 in the 29-point joint declaration issued on Sunday.
“We agreed that for ensuring global and regional peace and stability, the issue of Jammu & Kashmir needs peaceful resolution by Pakistan and India in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions,” read the text of the declaration signed by top parliamentarians from six major regional players.
Pakistan NA media director Mohammad Mohsin Iqbal gave credit for the inclusion of Kashmir in the ‘Islamabad Declaration’ to his boss Ayaz Sadiq, the National Assembly Speaker, who he said convened a brainstorming session and managed to convince even Russia, which has historically supported New Delhi’s stance on the issue.
DawnNews reported that the Russian delegation had expressed reservations over the inclusion of the issue Kashmir, which were then picked up Iran and Afghanistan as well. Iran, insiders claimed, had objections over the language of the Kashmir-specific section.
The Pakistani side contended that since Russia, Iran and Turkey had included issues of political interest to them — such as the crises in Iraq and Syria, the problems of the Middle East and Al Quds, and Turkey’s failed coup — it would be impossible for Pakistan to leave out the Kashmir issue.
It is worth noting that Russia has consistently vetoed any resolutions on the Kashmir issue at the United Nations.
