Stop terror to start talks: India to Pak after UNSC meeting on Kashmir

India on Friday told Pakistan that it has to stop terrorism to start talks as the UN Security Council held a rare closed door meeting to discuss revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.

Briefing the media following the conclusion of the informal meeting requested by China and Pakistan, Indian envoy to the UN Syed Akbaruddin said India's position was and remains that matters related to the Article 370 of the Constitution are entirely an internal matter of India and these have no external ramifications.

Without naming Pakistan, he said there are some who are trying to project an "alarmist approach" to the situation in Kashmir, which is far from the ground realities.

"Stop terror to start talks," he asserted.

On the Chinese and Pakistani envoys' remarks after the UNSC meeting, he said, "For the first time after the end of Security Council consultations, we noted that two states (China and Pakistan) who made national statements tried to pass them off as the will of the international community."
"India remains committed to ensure that the situation in Kashmir remains calm and peaceful. We are committed to all the agreements that we have signed on this issue. We note that there are some who try to project an alarmist approach to the situation, which is far from the ground realities."
Voicing China's stand on India revoking the special status of Kashmir, he said "the unilateral action by India has changed the status quo in Kashmir, which is an internationally recognised dispute."
Voicing Beijing's opposition to India forming a separate Union Territory of Ladakh after revocation of the special status of Kashmir, he said: "India's actions have also challenged China's sovereign interests and violated bilateral agreements in maintaining peace and stability in the border areas, and China is very much concerned."