October 30, 2001
India on Tuesday reacted angrily to undiplomatic comments of a UN military observer in Kashmir that tensions in South Asia were growing because of "political games" in New Delhi and Islamabad.
New Delhi also reiterated its long-held view that India will not permit third-party mediation in its dispute with rival Pakistan over divided Kashmir.
The Indian foreign ministry in New Delhi also warned that it would discuss with the United Nations on the need for an office of UN military observers in the Indian zone of Himalayan Kashmir. "The statement was totally unwarranted and uncalled for," foreign ministry spokeswoman Nirupama Rao told reporters, referring to Monday's remarks by the UN's chief military observer in Kashmir.
Major General Hermann K. Loidolt, head of the UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP), accused the two South Asian rivals of heightening regional tensions over Kashmir.
He said it was obvious there were "games both parties are playing with this tormented country".
"Whatever the reason is for playing political games, may it be a diversionary manoeuvre on the Pakistani side to make India the real enemy instead of the US, or may it be the dawning of the next election in India, it will be an issue for the US to solve," he said.
Loidolt's statement marked the first time the UNMOGIP has taken a political stand on the Kashmir dispute. India saw the general's remarks as a subject of outright rejection.
"India has never been one to play games or indulge in diversionary tactics," spokeswoman Rao said.
She also ruled out third-party mediation and said the dispute over Kashmir, which has led India and Pakistan to fight two wars, had to be settled bilaterally in line with a peace accord the pair signed in 1972.
"We absolutely reject that statement," Rao said on the general's comments that the United States would have to step in to defuse local tensions.
"We see no need for obiter dicta (arbitration) in Kashmir from third parties as we have said in the past. The issue of Kashmir can only be discussed by India and Pakistan, according to the Shimla Accord," the spokeswoman said.
Rao said she was quite certain that UN representative Loidolt was aware of the provisions of the Shimla Accord, which does not allow external mediators in regional disputes.
"...And if he does not then certainly there is a need for a reality check," she sharply rebuked.
The counter-attack came as the UNMOGIP prepared Monday to shift camp for six months to the Pakistani city of Rawalpindi after spending half the year in Srinagar, summer capital of Indian Kashmir.
The UNMOGIP has been monitoring the Line of Control (LoC) that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan since 1948. The small force has divided its time between Srinagar and Rawalpindi since 1951.
While the number of clashes on the LoC has remained roughly normal in the past months, Loidolt on Monday predicted that "the situation will become more tense in the time coming, not only along the LoC but also in the whole of Jammu and Kashmir state".
Earlier this month India shelled 11 Pakistani posts in what it called a "punitive" action against infiltrators planning violence inside the Indian-administered state.
Some Indian officials, including Kashmir state Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah, have called for India to strike at alleged training camps across the LoC used by Muslim militants fighting against New Delhi's control of Kashmir.
India insists that Kashmir is an integral part of its sovereign territory.
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