WASHINGTON: US is seriously ‘concerned about lockdown, detentions and communication black out by India in occupied Kashmir, said Alice Wells Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, adding that the United States was closely following the recent trip of foreign diplomats to Indian-occupied Kashmir and was looking forward to normalcy in the region.
In a message posted on the social networking platform Twitter by the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs at the US Department of State, Wells said that the trip was an important step but that the US remained concerned about the detention of leaders and residents in Kashmir.
“Closely following US Ambassador to India and other foreign diplomats’ recent trip to Jammu and Kashmir. Important step. We remain concerned by detention of political leaders and residents, and Internet restrictions. We look forward to a return to normalcy,” she wrote on the microblogging site.
The statement from Wells comes just before she starts a 10-day visit to the region during which she will travel to Sri Lanka, India, and Pakistan, from January 13-22. Wells will arrive in Pakistan on January 19 for a three-day visit, the US state department has previously said.
US Congress members reject Indian dictation on occupied Kashmir
In Islamabad, she will meet with senior Pakistani government officials and members of civil society to discuss issues of bilateral and regional concern. Before arriving in Islamabad, Wells will be in Sri Lanka from January 13-14 during which she will interact with high-ranking officials.
Wells will then travel to India, from January 15-18 to meet with senior government officials and to advance the US-India strategic global partnership, according to the US state department.
Wells had last visited Islamabad in August 2019, barely a few days after the Indian government had rushed through a presidential decree to abolish Article 370 of the Indian Constitution that granted special status to Indian occupied Kashmir, formally integrating the valley into India.
Following the revocation, a military curfew and communications blockade had been enforced in the valley and hundreds of thousands of Indian troops deployed to crush dissent. Several political leaders, including two former chief ministers, and thousands others had been arrested.
US envoy to India Kenneth I Juster and other diplomats meets with civil society members during their visit to Kashmir.
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