Turkish President Erdogan is soft on Kashmir this time in the UN General Assembly

Posted on 22nd Sep 2021 by rohit kumar

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has once again raised the issue of Kashmir in the 76th General Assembly of the United Nations. Addressing the UN General Assembly, Erdogan said that Turkey stands by its stand to resolve the Kashmir problem.

 

He said that the Kashmir problem has been entangled for the last 74 years and it should be resolved by both parties under the UN resolution.

 

However, this time Erdoan appeared soft on Kashmir in the UN General Assembly. Last year at the 75th General Assembly of the UN, President Erdogan raised the issue of Kashmir very loudly.

 

Last time, Erdogan had also raised the issue of abrogation of Article 370 from Kashmir. But this time he didn't say anything like that. This time, Erdogan raised the issue of Kashmir after the Vigar Muslims in Afghanistan, Israel, Syria, Libya, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, and China.

 

Most interestingly, Erdogan did not raise the issue of Vigar Muslims at the UN General Assembly last year, but this time. He was also criticized for this last time.

 

Erdogan's soft stance

Regarding the rights of Vigar Muslims in China, Erdogan said, "There is a need to make more efforts on the rights of Vigar Turk Muslims within the scope of China's territorial integrity."

 

In Afghanistan, Erdogan said that the people of Afghanistan have been left alone. The Turkish President said that Afghanistan needs international support. Erdogan said that Turkey will continue to help the people of Afghanistan in difficult times.

 

Addressing the United Nations General Assembly last year, Erdogan's tone on Kashmir was different. Erdogan then said, "The Kashmir conflict is very important for peace and stability in South Asia. This is still a burning issue. The situation has become more complicated after the revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.

 

Erdogan had said, "We are in favor of resolving the Kashmir issue by the dialogue, the UN resolution, and the expectations of the people of Kashmir." This cannot be separated from.

 

no response from Pakistan

This time, Erdoan talked about the UN proposal and dialogue in the solution of Kashmir but did not say the things expected of the people of Kashmir.

 

Last year, Pakistan had shown a lot of enthusiasm on this comment of Erdogan and even Prime Minister Imran Khan thanked him by sharing the video clip of Erdogan's speech.

 

Praising Erdogan, Imran Khan said, "We appreciate President Erdogan for once again raising his voice in support of the rights of Kashmiris in the United Nations General Assembly. The legitimate struggle of the Kashmiri people is encouraged by Turkey's support. Is."

 

At the same time, India had also strongly objected to Erdogan's statement last year. TS Tirumurti, India's representative to the United Nations, said, "We have asked President Erdogan on the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

 

saw the comment. This is interference in the internal matter of India and it is completely unacceptable to India. Turkey must learn to respect the sovereignty of another country.

 

Then Ardoin's statement was also covered in the Pakistani media. But this time there has been no warm official reaction from Pakistan to Erdogan's statement, nor is there any enthusiasm in the press there.

 

There has also been no reaction from India to Erdogan's remarks.

 

In February last year, Turkish President Erdogan went on a tour of Pakistan and then addressed the Pakistani Parliament and said that the issue of Kashmir is as important for the Pakistanis as it is for the people of Turkey.

 

Modi government and Turkey relations

Relations between India and Turkey have deteriorated in recent years. After becoming PM, Narendra Modi went on a tour of almost all the important countries of the Middle East but did not go to Turkey. On October 20 last year, the English newspaper The Hindu had published a report that Modi was going to visit Turkey in the last months of 2019 but canceled the tour due to Erdogan's line on Kashmir in favor of Pakistan.

 

Then Turkish Ambassador to India Sakir Ozkan told The Hindu, "Our government expected PM Modi to come to Ankara. This was not only expected but it was also talked about recently. We are now waiting for some other date. In the coming months, a new date is waiting to be decided according to the timing of PM Modi. The Indian government has taken this decision but of course, there was discussion about it." The Turkish ambassador also said that China had criticized India on Kashmir but Chinese President Xi Jinping visited India.

 

Turkey's support of Pakistan in Kashmir and FATF are the main reasons for the bitterness in the relations between the two countries. When Turkey launched attacks on Kurds in northern Syria, India also criticized Turkey for this and said that sovereignty should be respected.

 

India also canceled the deal to build a Navy Support Ship in India from Anadolu Shipyard in Turkey. India took these steps in response to Turkey's stand with Pakistan on Kashmir and FATF.

 

Friendship of Pakistan and Turkey

 

Relations between Pakistan and Turkey have been much better than that of India. Both countries are Sunni dominated by the Islamic world. Erdogan has always had good relations with Pakistan.

 

When the military coup against Erdogan in Turkey failed in July 2016, Pakistan openly came in favor of Erdogan. The then Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif had called Erdoan and supported him. After this Sharif also visited Turkey. Since then relations between Erdogan and Pakistan have improved further.

 

Turkey has invested $1 billion in Pakistan since 2017. Turkey is working on several projects in Pakistan. He has also been providing Metrobus rapid transit system to Pakistan. Work is still going on regarding the proposed free trade agreement between the two countries.

 

If this agreement is reached between the two countries, then bilateral trade can increase from $ 90 million to $ 10 billion.

 

Turkish Airlines has also expanded a lot in Pakistan. Istanbul has developed into a regional aviation hub. Most Pakistanis go to the countries of the West via Turkey.

 

However, Pakistanis need a visa to go to Turkey. If a free trade agreement is reached, the relationship between the two countries will deepen. In recent years, the arrival of tourists from the West and Europe has decreased in Turkey, so Turkey wants to attract tourists from Islamic countries.

 

Turkey has long been an economic and political model for Pakistan. But with time things have changed a lot. Former Pakistan Army chief and former President General Pervez Musharraf have been an admirer of Turkey's founder Mustafa Kamal Pasha.

 

Musharraf has been praising Pasha's secular reforms and strict governance. The current Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan has been praising Erdogan.

 

Imran Khan called Erdogan a hero for failing a coup in Turkey in 2016. Imran Khan also does not want that there should be an army coup against the political government in Pakistan, which is always feared in Pakistan.

 

On February 14 last year, Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan, while addressing the Pakistan-Turkey Business Forum in Islamabad, said that Turkish President Erdogan will win if he contests elections in Pakistan.