Kashmir a bilateral issue between India, Pakistan: Boris Johnson tells PM Modi

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, during a telephone call with PM Modi on Tuesday made it clear that Kashmir remains a bilateral matter between India and Pakistan as far as the UK’s view is concerned. “The Prime Minister and Prime Minister Modi discussed the current situation in Kashmir, a Downing Street spokesperson said in an official readout of the phone call on Tuesday. The telephone conversation came ahead of the G7 meeting in France over the weekend, where the two leaders are scheduled to meet for the first time since Johnson became the UK Prime Minister.

“The Prime Minister made clear that the UK views the issue of Kashmir as one for India and Pakistan to resolve bilaterally. He underlined the importance of resolving issues through dialogue,” the spokesperson said.

“Ahead of the G7, the Prime Minister and Prime Minister Modi agreed on the importance of working together to tackle climate change and other threats to biodiversity. They looked forward to meeting at the summit this weekend to discuss this and other issues, the spokesperson added.

Earlier, Prime Minister's Office said, Modi drew Johnson's attention to the challenges posed by vested interests pursuing their motivated agenda, including by violent means.

"In this context he referred to the violence and vandalism perpetrated by a large mob against the High Commission of India in London on the last Independence Day of India," the statement read.

The prime minister also congratulated Johnson on his election to the high office and expressed his readiness to work with him for strengthening the strategic partnership between India and the United Kingdom.

“Both leaders agreed that as the world’s pre-eminent democracies, the two countries have much to contribute together to effectively addressing the many challenges faced by the world today,” it added.

Modi also pointed out that terrorism had plagued all parts of the world, including India and Europe.

“He stressed the importance of effective steps to ward off the threats posed by radicalisation, violence and intolerance, particularly in the context of the expanding footprint of terrorist organisations such as ISIS,” the statement said.

On August 5, New Delhi scrapped the autonomy of Jammu and Kashmir, a divided Muslim-majority region that has enjoyed special status in the Indian constitution since the country’s independence in 1947.