Pakistan exercising letter diplomacy to UN will not work: MEA

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Tuesday questioned Islamabad's sincerity on holding serious dialogue over Jammu and Kashmir, driving home the point that Pakistan's efforts to elicit a strong response from the United Nations has failed.

"The only framework in which all outstanding issues between India and Pakistan can be resolved and peaceful and co-operative ties can be built between the two countries is the one that both countries have agreed to. That is the framework agreed under the Simla Agreement and the Lahore Declaration. India's position on this matter is very clear," MEA spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said here at a press conference.

"We have already stated that we are willing for a serious dialogue in this framework. This dialogue will cover all outstanding issues, including Jammu and Kashmir. It seems that Pakistan is not interested in that sort of a dialogue. The sending of a letter to the United Nations Secretary General by Pakistan is a well-known tactic. It has not worked earlier, it will not work now," he added.

Reiterating its position that there is no place of any third-party intervention vis-a-vis Jammu and Kashmir, Akbaruddin said, "The road to a peaceful and co-operative relationship between India and Pakistan runs from Islamabad via Lahore to New Delhi. If you divert that road to New York or elsewhere, it will not serve any purpose, because there is no place for third party in India-Pakistan relations."

Akbaruddin also stated that the onus of creating a positive environment for the normalisation of relations between the two countries is on Pakistan, pointing towards the recent escalation of firing in Jammu and Kashmir between the security forces of both nations.

"India will not accept violence on the border or the Line of Control (LoC) or continued terrorism against our citizens. It is up to Pakistan to deescalate the situation and we feel that Pakistan must take immediate steps to restore peace and tranquility along the International Border and the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir and ends its sponsorship of terrorism against us," he said.

"Our security forces have been and will respond appropriately to any attempts by Pakistan to undermine peace and tranquility along the International Boundary and the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir," he added.

Pakistan's efforts to seek UN intervention on Jammu and Kashmir issue has failed, with the world body reiterating the fact that India and Pakistan need to resolve all differences through dialogue to find a long-term solution to the dispute.

Pakistan National Security Advisor Sartaj Aziz in a letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, had accused India of "deliberate and unprovoked violations of the ceasefire agreement and cross-border firing" over the past weeks.