Why did Erdogan break with tradition by skipping Kashmir at UNGA?

ISLAMABAD: For the first time in years, Turkiye President Recep Tayyip Erdogan skipped any mention of Occupied Kashmir when he addressed the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday.

Erdogan has brought up Indian-occupied Kashmir not only at the UN but also at bilateral meetings with the Pakistani leadership and Turkiye has always supported the Kashmiri cause at the OIC.

It was only last year that Erdogan, during his address at the UN, had called for the “establishment of a just and lasting peace in Kashmir through dialogue and cooperation between India and Pakistan”.

So what changed in 2024? Nothing, say officials in Islamabad -- including the Foreign Office.

While they cannot respond to why Erdogan skipped mention of Kashmir at a time when Gaza and Lebanon are the focus of all the speeches at the UN, they insist there is no reason to doubt Turkiye’s support for Kashmir.

Sources in New York tell The News, “There is the annual meeting of the OIC Contact Group on Kashmir on the sidelines of the UNGA [today on Thursday] and Turkiye will be participating as it has in the past”.

When the Foreign Office spokeswoman was approached, she also did not comment directly on Erdogan skipping Kashmir in his speeches but responded, “Turkiye has consistently supported Pakistan on the Jammu and Kashmir dispute. Turkish leadership and [its] diplomats have expressed support for the right of self-determination in the Kashmir dispute at multiple forums including the OIC Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir. Turkiye is also an active member of the OIC Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir”. Kashmir was also raised at the bilateral meeting on Tuesday by Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif when he called on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of the UNGA.

According to a statement issued from New York by the Prime Minister’s Office, “The prime minister appreciated Turkiye’s firm and consistent support for the oppressed people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK)”.

However, some in Pakistan place the blame for the issue of Kashmir being ignored abroad on the lack of forceful diplomacy. Former Senator Mushahid Hussain Syed told The News: “This is somewhat inexplicable as President Erdogan has taken a strong and bold stand on Palestine in his UNGA speech, similar, to the strong and bold stand he has always taken on Kashmir in the past. Perhaps, it’s because of mixed signals on Pakistan’s part as influential sections of officialdom talked of a keenness for trade with India, which gave a message of unilateral desire for normalization with India, while the brutal Indian occupation of Kashmir continues”.