PM Narendra Modi Apprises Russian President Putin for India’s Stand on Kashmir

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday thanked President Vladimir Putin of Russia for uploading India’s stand on Kashmir and told him that “false and misleading” information was being spread by Pakistan on the issue. During his talks with Putin at Vladivostok Modi himself brought up the issue of Jammu and Kashmir in the context of recent decision to abolish the state’s special status. The Prime Minister “explained the rationale” behind his government’s decision, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said while briefing media persons on the talks.Modi thanked Putin for giving a “clear message” on the issue, after Russia rejected Pakistan’s request for intervention. Russia has maintained that Jammu and Kashmir was a bilateral matter between India and Pakistan and there was no need for any third party’s intervention. Earlier, while making a statement to the media along with Putin, Modi said both of them were against any “outside intervention” in the matters related to any country, sending out a clear message to Pakistan which has been desperately trying to rope in other countries on the issue of Jammu and Kashmir ever since the special status of the state was abolished on August 5 by India’s Parliament. PM Modi said   Russia is a symbol of faith. Putin did not refer to Indo-Pakistan ties in his comment. Gokhale said “our understanding is that Russia firmly stands with India on this”. Ever since India took the decision early last month, Pakistan has been approaching various countries for support but has met with rebuff from most of the nations. Only, its ‘all-weather friend” China has got the issue informally discussed at the UN Security Council, even though the world body issued no formal statement after the meeting last month( with image  courtesy to Reuters)