http://gantdaily.com/2010/11/16/india-hails-pakistan-fumes-at-kashmirs-exclusion-from-un-list/
India Hails, Pakistan Fumes At Kashmir's Exclusion From UN List
AHN News Staff
New York, United States (AHN) – The United Nations has delivered a blow to Pakistan's ambitions on Kashmir in deciding to remove the disputed Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir from its list of unresolved disputes.
The development drew a protest Monday from the Pakistani envoy to the U.N., Amjad Hussain B Sial. Pakistan has regularly asking the international body to intervene in the controversy.
Speaking at the General Assembly during a discussion on Security Council reforms, Sial said, "Jammu and Kashmir was not mentioned in the context of unresolved long-running situations. We understand this was an inadvertent omission, as Jammu and Kashmir is one of the oldest disputes on agenda of the Security Council." The discussion was organized by the United Kingdom, which is presiding over the Security Council this month.
India has hailed the exclusion of J&K from the list of unresolved international disputes. Minister of State for External Affairs, Preneet Kaur, while speaking to reporters on Monday said, "We have always firmly maintained that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India"¦this is a very welcome step and we hope that in same way the U.N. addresses our bilateral issues."
It has been Pakistan's perennial stand to ask the U.N. to intervene into the matter and help it resolve with India, while India remains of the view the Kashmir issue must be bilaterally resolved between the two neighbors. Sial's opposition came after it was found that Kashmir did not figure in the recent annual report of the Security Council presented to the General Assembly.
The issue came to light when, mentioning disputed land issues throughout the world, the UK envoy to the U.N., Mark Lyall Grant did not name Kashmir as one of them. Grant said, "Some long-running situations, including in the Middle East, Cyprus and Western Sahara remain unresolved, as do issues where the Council has become engaged in recent years, including Nepal and Guinea Bissau." He further added that "huge challenges" remained unaddressed in countries such as Sudan, Somali and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Some time ago, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the international body would wait until asked to intervene and would not intervene unless asked by both the parties. In October, Ban said, "As far as this role of good offices is concerned, the United Nations normally takes that initiative when requested by both parties concerned."
Significantly, the UK also reiterated its support for India's candidature as a permanent member of the Security Council during the debate in the General Assembly.
This time, it was deputy envoy Philip Parham, who said that keeping within the structure of the Security Council, the UK remained supportive of Brazil, Germany, India and Japan, as well as permanent representation for Africa.
The India-Pakistan question over Kashmir has not found mention in Security Council reports since 2000.