Defence Minister on visit to South Korea to strengthen bilateral ties

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will begin his three-day visit to the Republic of Korea starting Wednesday and if Kashmir issue comes up, he will convey India's position, said Indian envoy Sripriya Ranganathan on Tuesday.

"Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is scheduled to arrive in Seoul on Wednesday afternoon on a significant visit where he would be meeting the Korean Prime Minister and the Defence Minister. The two sides will be discussing ways to further strengthen their ties," Indian Ambassador to Republic of Korea Sripriya Ranganathan told ANI.

When asked if the Kashmir issue would come up for discussion between the two sides during the visit, she said that if the matter comes up for discussion, the Defence Minister will definitely convey the Indian position to the Korean leadership.

Ranganathan said the stated Indian position on the Kashmir issue was very clear that this was an internal matter of India and there was no need for the international community to be concerned.

During his visit to Japan also, Singh had told Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Monday that Pakistan has no "locus standi on Jammu and Kashmir, which is an integral part of India."

He had also informed Abe that the decision to revoke the special status accorded to Jammu and Kashmir will benefit its people.

Pakistan has gone on a diplomatic overdrive criticising India's decision to abrogate Article 370 and demanding international intervention in the issue, which has strongly been opposed by India.

Amid the growing defence ties between India and Korea including military hardware cooperation, the Defence Minister is also scheduled to visit the Korean Aerospace Industries facility.

India had recently acquired the K-9 Vajra howitzers, which have been made in India by a Korean firm while other firms are in a race for several Indian defence projects.

The Indian Ambassador said the Defence Minister would also pay tributes at the Korean War Memorial including to the Indian soldiers who were deployed there as peacekeepers in the 1950s during the Korean wars.

The Defence Minister is accompanied by Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar and several other defence and military officials for the important two-nation visit.