New Delhi: German Ambassador Walter Lindner Monday said Jammu and Kashmir was a bilateral issue between Indian and Pakistan but the dispute has “regional consequences”.
“We consider this (Kashmir) as a bilateral issue but it has consequences on regional surrounding. We would like to see bilateral contacts remaining, but it is up to the two sides (India and Pakistan),” said Lindner, during an interaction with the Indian Association of Foreign Affairs Correspondents (IAFAC) in Delhi.
The ambassador also said that Berlin would like to see restrictions being lifted from the Valley but stressed that it has to be done while keeping in mind security issues. “But there should be no violation of human rights (as and when restrictions are lifted),” he added.
Lindner also said that Germany believed in fighting terrorism but was against war. His remarks came as the Valley entered its 57th day of lockdown Monday.
During Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the US last week, the State Department had also stressed on the need to release local leaders kept under detention and hold elections at the “earliest opportunity” and for “rapid action” to lift the ongoing shutdown.
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Iran did not stick to spirit of JCPOA
Lindner also said that it was “premature” on the part of the US to walk out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) — commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal — while adding that Iran did not stick to the “spirit of the treaty”. This, in turn, had upset the European Union.
The envoy, however, agreed that a military confrontation is not the solution.
His statement came after an official website of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that Germany, UK and France were keen to join in the talks between Iran and US, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. But the meeting never took place.
In the meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has also refused to lift sanctions from Iran.
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