*NEW YORK: *Prime Minister Imran Khan thanked Turkey’s President RecepTayyip Erdogan for raising the Kashmir issue in his address on Tuesday tothe UN General Assembly.
PM told reporters in New York he hoped more leaders at least ask India tolift the siege on Kashmir.
“We are very thankful that the president has taken a very principledstance,” said Khan, adding Pakistan has a “very good relationship” withTurkey.
He also said Erdogan will visit Islamabad next month.
Erdogan told the body that a solution to the Kashmir issue can only befound through dialogue and the Kashmir issue has awaited a solution for 72years.
“In order for the Kashmiri people to look at a safe future together withtheir Pakistani and Indian neighbors, it is imperative to solve the problemthrough dialogue and on the basis of justice and equity, but not throughcollision,” said Erdogan.
He said Kashmiris are “virtually under blockade with 8 million people,unfortunately, unable to step outside of Kashmir.”
The official Twitter account of the Pakistan government also sharedErdogan’s words on Kashmir with his picture in a banner.
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“We salute President Erdogan for forcefully raising the issue of occupiedKashmir in his address today to the UN General Assembly and also referringto UN resolutions on the issue,” said Pakistan’s envoy to the UN, MaleehaLodhi.
Thousands of people from Pakistan and Kashmir have also flooded socialmedia with messages thanking Erdogan for mentioning Kashmir in his speech.
#OurVoiceErdogan became the top trending hashtag on Twitter, garneringnearly 300,000 tweets in a few hours.
The India-occupied region has been dealing with a clampdown since Aug 5,when the Indian government nixed Article 370 of the Indian Constitution,which conferred it special status.
Hundreds of people, mostly political leaders, have been detained orarrested by authorities since the action.
India and Pakistan hold Kashmir in parts and claim it in full. China alsocontrols part of the contested region, but it is India and Pakistan whohave fought two wars over Kashmir. -Anadolu Agency
