Shahbaz Sharif calls Kashmir issue crucial to India-Pakistan relations, likens region with Gaza because…

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif

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Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif mentioned the Kashmir issue and the war in Gaza in one context. Firstly, he inferred that without the solution of the Kashmir issue, the India-Pakistan ties cannot become strong, and the human tragedies in both Kashmir and Gaza cannot be ignored, said a report by India Today. His statement came while addressing the Pakistani community living in London.

While addressing the overseas Pakistanis in London, he said, “Both India and Pakistan have fought four wars, costing billions of dollars. If not for these wars, this huge amount of money could have been spent on the development and prosperity of the two people. It’s up to us to decide whether we want to live in peace or conflict. If we choose to, we can work towards our prosperity and progress. However, I believe that resolving the Kashmir issue is a fundamental step towards this. Without it, relations between the two countries cannot improve.”

General Shahbaz Sharif draws Kashmir parallel with Gaza

He further said that millions of Kashmiris have shed their blood which would not go waste. He then indirectly compared the situation in India’s northern part with Gaza, where the ongoing war claimed more than 64,000 lives of Palestinians and people cannot receive even the basic facilities. “The region is linked forever, whether people like it or not,” he said.

Sharif clarified that Pakistan is always ready to be on table with India, but when equal benefits are given. “Fairness and respect must guide any dialogue,” he advised. He made it amply clear that for both the neighbouring nations to improve their ties, resolving the Kashmir issue is vital. “If anyone believed that India-Pakistan relations could be established without addressing the Kashmir issue, they would be living in a fool’s paradise,” he added.

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His statement regarding peace in the region came months after terrorist groups based in Pakistan killed 26 people in Kashmir’s Pahalgam on April 22 this year. In a response to the attack, India took a bold step and canceled the Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan. Soon after this, India took another major initiative to launch Operation Sindoor, with an aim to destroy terrorist camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).  

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