Pakistan tells UN Security Council that Kashmir is ‘not India’s internal matter’

Pakistan on Friday rejected India’s claim that Jammu and Kashmir was its “integral part” or “an internal matter”, telling the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) that the territory remained an internationally recognized dispute that should be resolved in accordance with relevant UNSC resolutions and the aspirations of the people of Kashmir.

The remarks were made by Counselor Saima Saleem while exercising Pakistan’s right of reply during an open debate of the UN Security Council on strengthening mechanisms for the peaceful settlement of disputes. “Jammu and Kashmir are neither an integral part of India nor its internal matter,” Pakistan’s representative to the UN Security Council told her Indian counterpart.

He said India’s claims could not “rewrite history, change the internationally recognized disputed status of Jammu and Kashmir, or conceal nearly eight decades of systematic human rights violations against the people of Kashmir, including the denial of their inalienable right to self-determination.”

Calling on India to respect international law, Saima said it was “ironic to hear India preach peace while violating international law and Security Council resolutions, and practicing aggression against its neighbors, repression in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, persecution of minorities and state-sponsored terrorism across the region and beyond.”

Responding to India’s comments during the debate, he said the Indian delegation had attempted to undermine the debate through “denial, distortion, false accusations and gross misrepresentation of its conduct.”

He said India itself had taken the Jammu and Kashmir dispute to the Security Council before ignoring its resolutions.

“Let me remind the Indian delegation that Security Council resolutions have no expiration date,” he said, underlining that respect for international law remains essential to maintaining international peace and security.

Saima also accused India of committing widespread human rights violations, including arbitrary detentions, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances and restrictions on political freedoms in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) and other parts of the country.

Comparing Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) with IIOJK, he said Kashmiris in AJK exercised their political rights and enjoyed freedom of expression, while in IIOJK voices were silenced and dissent criminalized.

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He stated that thousands of cases of arbitrary detentions, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, conflict-related sexual violence, political repression and demographic changes had been documented in IIOJK, while the people of Kashmir continued to be denied their right to self-determination.

Highlighting what he described as India’s disregard for international law, Saima cited New Delhi’s unilateral decision to put the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) on hold.

He said the Indus River was the lifeline for more than 240 million people and should never be used as a “weapon of war”, warning that such actions could undermine peace and security in South Asia.

Saima also mentioned that India sponsored terrorism against Pakistan, saying New Delhi-backed groups had carried out attacks that caused nearly 100,000 casualties, including children.

He called out India for supporting militant groups operating through the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and Majeed Brigade.

In support of his allegations, he cited the arrest of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav in Pakistan, as well as what he described as assassinations carried out by Indian agents in North America through proxies. “India’s terrorist franchise has gone from regional to global,” he said.

Saima also accused India’s “Hindutva-inspired right-wing fascist RSS-BJP government” of normalizing hate crimes and discrimination against Muslims and other minority communities.

“Christians are persecuted, Dalits are dehumanized and Sikhs are disenfranchised in the greatest hypocrisy in the world,” he said.

Concluding his remarks, Saima said Pakistan had consistently exercised restraint despite tensions with India and remained committed to dialogue and peaceful resolution of disputes.

“The path to peace in South Asia lies not through denial or defiance, but through adherence to the Charter and international law,” he said, urging India to fulfill its treaty obligations and commit to the peaceful settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with relevant UN Security Council resolutions.