India’s Kashmir moves within Constitution, says Russia

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Moscow/New Delhi: Russia has backed India’s moves on Jammu and Kashmir, saying that the changes are within the framework of the Indian Constitution, even as it urged India and Pakistan to maintain peace.

In response to a question during its press briefing on Friday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia said Moscow expects that India and Pakistan “will not allow aggravation of the situation in the region due to the change by New Delhi in the status of the state of Jammu and Kashmir”.

Moscow said that the “change in the status of the state of Jammu and Kashmir and its division into two Union Territories has been carried out within the framework of the Constitution of the Republic of India”.

It hoped that the two sides will “not allow a new aggravation of the situation in the region as a result of the decisions”. Russia is a consistent supporter of normalisation of relations between India and Pakistan.

“We hope that the differences between them will be resolved by political and diplomatic means on a bilateral basis in accordance with the provisions of the Shimla Agreement of 1972 and the Lahore Declaration of 1999,” the Foreign Office said.

Pakistan has been upping the ante against India ever since New Delhi revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and divided it into two Union Territories — J&K and Ladakh earlier this week, in order to bring in faster development and security to the state.