Pakistan-China Joint Statement Mentions Kashmir, Draws Criticism Over Hypocrisy In Praising CPEC While Opposing 'Unilateral Action'

The joint statement issued by China and Pakistan after a meeting between their respective foreign ministers today mentions the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and opposes 'unilateral actions' in the region, without specifically referring to India's revocation of Article 370.

In the statement, China emphasised that the Kashmir dispute should be resolved peacefully and in accordance with relevant Security Council resolutions, the UN Charter, and bilateral agreements between India and Pakistan. Both China and Pakistan have also opposed "unilateral actions" that could complicate the situation in the region.

Regarding CPEC, the statement celebrated its completion of a decade in 2023 and praised it as a prime example of Belt and Road cooperation, contributing to socio-economic development and job creation in Pakistan.

However, the statement's opposition to "unilateral actions" in Kashmir seems hypocritical when viewed in the context of CPEC, experts said.

India has objected to CPEC because it passes through territory that India claims as its own. By going ahead with CPEC despite India's objections, China and Pakistan themselves took unilateral actions that complicated the already fraught relations between the three countries.

The joint statement by China and Pakistan comes just a day after India's External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar, stated that those who are unwilling to accept the changes made in Kashmir should "wake up and smell the coffee, as Article 370 is history."

Jaishankar made these remarks during a press conference following the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meeting in Goa on May 5. He also called out China and Pakistan for violating India's sovereignty and territorial integrity through the Belt and Road Initiative, including CPEC.