US President Donald Trump said Monday he had no need to help mediate between Pakistan and India over tensions in disputed Kashmir because Prime Minister Narendra Modi feels he has it “under control”.
On August 5 Modi’s Hindu-nationalist government revoked the autonomy of the Muslim-majority territory where tens of thousands of people have been killed in an uprising against Indian rule since 1989, most of them civilians.
Earlier this month, Trump said he was ready to step in, but at a meeting with Modi at the G7 in France, Trump said “the prime minister really feels he has it under control”.
Trump added he and Modi spoke about Kashmir “at great length” on Sunday.
New Delhi’s contentious decision angered Pakistan, which has fought two wars with India over the region, and Prime Minister Imran Khan said Monday he would continue fighting for the rights of Kashmiris.
Khan said he planned to embark on a diplomatic tour soon to raise the issue in international forums including the UN General Assembly in September.
“I will tour the world and tell them what is happening… the Modi government is pursuing a policy which brought havoc globally in the past,” Khan said in a televised broadcast.
“Many Muslim governments, which are not openly supporting us due to their business interests, will sooner or later support our position… It is imperative that we should stand by Kashmiris. We should give a message to Kashmiris that we are with them.”