ISLAMABAD: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has urged both Pakistan and India to settle the lingering dispute of Kashmir once and for all through talks, Radio Pakistan reported on Sunday.
In an interview in Ankara ahead of his visit to India, the Turkish leader stressed the need for a negotiated settlement of the long-standing issue. He said there was no similarity between the Kurdish insurgents and the Kashmiri freedom fighters. Commenting on the issue of membership in the Nuclear Suppliers Group, the Turkish president said he had always supported entry of both India and Pakistan into the group. Erdogan’s statement comes in the wake of a violent month in Indian-held Kashmir during which many Kashmiri youths have been killed by Indian troops. At least six civilians were killed in the valley on April 9 when police opened fire at the protesters who stormed polling stations during by-election for a parliamentary seat. State and paramilitary police fired bullets and shotgun pellets as thousands of protesters shouting slogans against Indian occupation charged into voting booths in Budgam district near Srinagar. Authorities in the valley this week ordered internet service providers to block 15 social media services for at least one month, saying they were being misused by ‘anti-national and anti-social elements’. The Turkish president is expected to meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday (today), India Today reported. The Turkish leader will hold talks with Modi on key bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest.
