UK denies going against India at UNSC meeting

Sandeep Dikshit

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 24

The UK on Saturday sought to dispel the impression that it had not supported India during the informal consultations on the Kashmir issue at the UN Security Council more than a week ago.

The UK has been on the back foot after news filtered out from the UN Headquarters that London had not been as enthusiastic in backing the Indian position like some other permanent members in the UNSC such as the US, France and Russia. Since all discussions under the format opted by the UNSC to discuss Kashmir are confidential, there was no independent corroboration to that claim.

The impression was strengthened after thousands of people, with Pakistani and Kashmiri flags, milled around the Indian High Commission in London and reportedly attacked a BJP-backed demonstration with bottles and eggs.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi then called up his British counterpart Boris Johnson on August 20 and pointed out that some “vested interests were pursuing their agenda through violent means”.

The complaint elicited an apology from Johnson.

Now setting the record straight on the UNSC consultation, a British High Commission spokesperson here said there had been some inaccurate speculation about UK’s position at the closed session of the UNSC on Kashmir on August 16.

“The UK did not call for this session or support a formal Council statement and we have a long-standing position that this dispute should be resolved bilaterally between the countries concerned. Neither do we seek to mediate. We continue to call for restraint and action to address current concerns, and welcome efforts to do so as soon as possible,” he added.