Poland at centre of India-Pakistan diplomatic war

Poland has suddenly found itself at the centre of India-Pakistan diplomatic war over Kashmir.

With India keen to foil desperate attempts by Pakistan to internationalise the issue of Kashmir at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), both sides have of late reached out to Poland as the Central European nation at present holds the presidency of the most powerful body of the international organisation.

Poland is one of the 10 non-permanent members of the 15-member UNSC. It holds the presidency of the council this month.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar called up Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz on August 6 – just a day after Home Minister Amit Shah announced in Rajya Sabha the decision of the government to strip Jammu and Kashmir of its special status and to reorganize the state into two Union Territories.

New Delhi made the early move to reach out to Warsaw as it anticipated that Islamabad would make a desperate attempt to question the decision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Government on J&K at the UN Security Council.

Jaishankar told Czaputowicz that New Delhi's recent move on Jammu and Kashmir was an “internal” affair of India and was aimed at “bringing security to the region that is particularly vulnerable to terrorist attacks”.

Czaputowicz conveyed to Jaishankar that he would hope that dialogue between India and Pakistan would prevent escalation of tensions between the two countries.

He also assured External Affairs Minister that Poland, as a non-permanent member of the UNSC holding presidency, stood ready, to engage, if needed, in preventing actions impacting security situation, according to a press release issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Polish Government.

Pakistan, however, did not relent and reach out to Poland.

Czaputowicz on Tuesday (August 12) received a call from Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Foreign Minister of Pakistan, too. Qureshi conveyed to Czaputowicz that Pakistan's position that India's recent decision on J&K had no legitimacy and it had put the local people in Kashmir in a “difficult situation”. “He (Qureshi) expressed his hope that the situation in Kashmir would be the subject of discussion at the UNSC,” the MFA of Polish Government stated.

Qureshi also wrote to Czaputowicz requesting the UNSC president to include a discussion on New Delhi's decisions on Kashmir in the agenda of the council this month.

Czaputowicz told Qureshi over phone that the dispute between the countries (India and Pakistan) could only be solved through dialogue.

He noted that the European Union too called for dialogue.

He also said that Poland, being the chair of the UNSC this month, would “closely monitor developments in the region and maintain regular contact with the partners”.

Pakistan renewed its bid to internationalize the issue of J&K in the wake of the recent moves by India. It, however, only got unequivocal support from China, while the United States tried to strike a balance between India and Pakistan. Russia rejected Pakistan's plea outright and stood by India unequivocally.