The visit was also the first by a top US dilplomat since 2019, when the erstwhile state was reorganised into two Union Territories following the reading down of Article 370.
US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor, who recently visited Jammu and Kashmir for the first time since assuming office in January this year, described the region as an ” improtant part of India “, while indicating that Washington would review its travel advisory for the region.
On the surface, the comment appeared to be a routine statement delivered alongside Chief Minister Omar Abdullah during the envoy’s first visit to the Valley. However, when viewed through the lens of seven decades of US policy on Kashmir, the remark carries significance far beyond its immediate context. President Bill Clinton administration pressed Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to withdraw forces from across the Line of Control, effectively backing the principle that the LoC must be respected. The move marked a diplomatic victory for New Delhi. Seen in isloation, Sergio Gor’s remark may appear to be a routine statement.
The Kennedy administration, particularly after the 1962 India-China war, actively encouraged negotiations between Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Pakistani President Ayub Khan. In July 2019, Trump controversially said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had asked him to mediate on Kashmir, a claim New Delhi immediately and vociferously rejected.
Over the decades, Washington’s approach has broadly evolved from active involvement and mediation attempts in the 1950s and 1960s to a more neutral “bilateral issue” formulation. What Exactly The US Envoy Said In the early decades after Independence, Washington viewed the Kashmir issue as a major source of instability in South Asia.
The remarks also mark a notable contrast to earlier US positions. However, words matter in diplomacy, and Kashmir has historically been one of the most carefully worded subject in the US foreign policy.
