Mumbai: N general secretary Antonio Guterres is very concerned about any possible escalation between the two countries over Kashmir and appealed to both sides to deal with the issue through dialogue, his spokesman said.
Guterres met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Bieritz, France last month and has also spoken to Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, UN chief spokesman Stephen Dujaric said in a daily press conference here on Tuesday said in.
On his request on Kashmir issue, Guterres also met with the permanent representative of Pakistan, UN Maleha Lodhi, on Monday. His message to all of them has remained the same publicly and privately, that he is very concerned about any possible escalation between India and Pakistan over the situation. He appealed to both sides to deal with the issue through dialogue, Dujarric said.
Dujarric was giving an answer to the question whether Guterres plans to mediate on Kashmir between India and Pakistan during the UN General Assembly session later this month which will include both Modi and Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan.
His remarks came at the 42nd session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva over the Kashmir issue between India and Pakistan.
The UN chief has said that his good offices will be available only when both sides ask for it. However, India has made it clear to the international community that the Kashmir issue is an internal matter and does not require any third-party mediation.
Pakistan downgraded its diplomatic relations with India and expelled the Indian High Commissioner following the repeal of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir on 5 August.
(With PTI Inputs)
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