Pakistan Tells UN Kashmir ‘Never Was, Is Not, and Will Never Be’ Part of India

The statement was made by Gul Qaiser Sarwani while exercising Pakistan’s right of reply after Parvathaneni Harish described Kashmir as an integral part of India.

Addressing the 193-member General Assembly, Sarwani said Jammu and Kashmir remains an internationally recognised dispute that continues to be on the agenda of the United Nations Security Council.

“No amount of obfuscation can alter the historical, legal and international character of this dispute,” he said, adding that Jammu and Kashmir “never was, neither is, and nor will ever be” an integral part of India.

The exchange followed remarks by Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, who said the Security Council’s annual report underscored the continuing relevance of both the Kashmir and Palestine disputes.

According to Ambassador Ahmad, more than 20 communications concerning the India-Pakistan dispute were brought before the Security Council during the January–December 2025 reporting period. He also noted that the Council held closed consultations on the issue in May 2025, demonstrating that the Kashmir dispute continues to engage the attention of the international body more than seven decades after it was first placed on its agenda.

Pakistan maintains that lasting peace in South Asia requires a just resolution of the Kashmir dispute in accordance with relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the aspirations of the Kashmiri people, including their right to self-determination, Ahmad said.

Speaking on the broader Security Council report, the Pakistani envoy also highlighted the ongoing conflict in Palestine, particularly the humanitarian situation in Gaza. He said the adoption of Security Council Resolution 2803, which endorsed the Gaza Peace Plan, offered hope for ending the violence and stressed the importance of its full implementation.

Pakistan reaffirmed its support for the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and the establishment of an independent and viable Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.

Ambassador Ahmad further emphasized the role of UN peacekeeping operations and special political missions in maintaining international peace and security. He called for a more democratic, representative, and accountable multilateral system, arguing that the expansion of permanent membership and veto powers in the Security Council would run counter to those objectives.