Saudi Arabia seems to have acknowledged India’s stand on Jammu and Kashmir. It has urged both India and Pakistan to “resolve the outstanding issues between the two countries, especially the Jammu and Kashmir dispute to ensure peace and stability in the region”.
The joint statement was issued a day after Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Saudi de-facto ruler Prince Mohammed bin Salman held an official meeting on April 7 at Al-Safa Palace in Mecca.
"The two sides stressed the importance of dialogue between Pakistan and India to resolve the outstanding issues between the two countries, especially the Jammu and Kashmir dispute to ensure peace and stability in the region," the statement read.
India’s has been maintaining that Kashmir is a bilateral issue between the two countries and there is no question of any mediation or intervention by any third party.
India and Pakistan have longstanding friendly relations with Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia. India's relations with Riyadh have witnessed improvement during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's tenure.
Saudi Arabia has maintained a balanced approach over Jammu and Kashmir. Earlier, the Kingdom had expressed concern over Article 370 abrogation in August 2019. However, it had not explicitly condemned the actions, instead referring to it as New Delhi's internal matter.
In 2019, Pakistan urged the US to "persuade" India to start talks on the peaceful resolution of the Kashmir issue. This came after then US President Donald Trump offered to mediate between the two nations on the Kashmir issue.
However, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had made it clear that "any discussion on the issue, if at all warranted, will only be with Pakistan and only bilaterally".
India has repeatedly told Pakistan that Jammu and Kashmir “was, is and shall forever” remain an integral part of the country.
New Delhi has said it desires normal neighbourly relations with Pakistan in an environment free of terror, hostility and violence.
