Despite Government of India rejecting US President Donald Trump’s offer to mediate between India and Pakistan on the issue of Kashmir, the United States President has once again offered to mediate on the issue of Kashmir, saying it is a “very complicated place”.
According to the reports, Donald Trump, who spoke to both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, on Tuesday said that he was happy to try and help calm the situation in Kashmir. He said religion was one of the main reasons for uneasy ties between India and Pakistan.
Asked about the Kashmir crisis, President Trump says that “Kashmir is a very complicated place. You have the Hindus, and you have the Muslims, and I wouldn’t say they get along so great. And that’s what you have right now.” pic.twitter.com/mss0w8U9Hd
— NBC News (@NBCNews) August 20, 2019
“Kashmir is a very complicated place. You have Hindus and you have the Muslims and I wouldn’t say they get along so great,” Trump told reporters in the White House.
“I will do the best I can to mediate…you have two counties that haven’t gotten along well for a long time and frankly, it’s a very explosive situation,” he added.
The US President who is very enthusiastic to meddle in India’s affairs had previously spoken of his willingness to mediate indicating that he would raise the matter over the weekend with PM Modi. The two leaders are expected to meet in France for a summit of the Group of Seven (G7) industrialised nations.
“I think we’re helping the situation. But there’s tremendous problems between those two countries, as you know. And I will do the best I can to mediate or do something…great relationship with both of them, but they are not exactly friends at this moment. Complicated situation. A lot has to do with religion. Religion is a complicated subject,” the US President said.
On Monday, Donald Trump had spoken on the phone with his Prime Minister Modi and Imran Khan and called them “two good friends” and had urged them to work towards reducing tensions over Kashmir. He also advised Pakistan to “moderate its rhetoric with India” over Kashmir.
Earlier on Monday, PM Modi had a 30-minute telephonic conversation with Trump in which PM Modi had “stated that extreme rhetoric and incitement to anti-India violence by certain leaders in the region was not conducive to peace,” the government said. The phone call between the two leaders was the first since the government announced its decision to end special status for Jammu and Kashmir.
Soon after PM Modi’s call with Trump, a desperate Pakistan Prime MinisterImran Khan too had dialled the US President. Meanwhile, Pakistan government on Tuesday said it will approach the International Court of Justice over India’s decision to end special status to Jammu and Kashmir.
Last month, US President Trump had stirred up a storm when he claimed that PM Modi had requested him to mediate on the Kashmir issue. However, India had clarified that no such request was made.
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