World
Saudi India Pakistan Saudi Arabia excludes Gilgit-Baltistan, Kashmir from the Pakistan's map
Dhaka, November 28: Saudi Arabia recently removed Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan from the map of Pakistan. The media quoted Amjad Ayub Mirza, an activist from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, as saying.
Amjad Ayub wrote in a tweet that Saudi Arabia had removed Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan from the map of Pakistan.
He tweeted a picture and wrote in the caption, Saudi Arabia's gift to India on Diwali - removing Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir from the map of Pakistan.
It is learned that Saudi Arabia has issued a commemorative note of 20 riyals with a map of the world on the occasion of the G20 summit on November 21-22. That map did not show Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir as part of Pakistan.
Earlier, Imran Khan's government published a political map of Pakistan, showing different parts of India.
Saudi Arabia's friendship with India has grown rapidly over the past few years. Saudi Arabia is now India's fourth largest trading partner. In addition to crude oil, the two countries have been cooperating in various fields, including defense and security. As a result, India has become an important partner in Saudi Arabia's 'Vision 2030'.
On the other hand, relations between the two countries deteriorated after Saudi Arabia refused Pakistan's request to convene a meeting of foreign ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (CIC) in Riyadh to discuss Kashmir. Saudi Arabia cut off oil supplies to Pakistan and canceled an economic loan agreement with the country after Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi made negative remarks. Apart from this incident, Saudi Arabia was building distance with Pakistan as it moved closer to Turkey which did not have good relations with Saudi Arabia.
But not showing Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan on the map of Pakistan is a big blow to Pakistan, because in the international arena, especially in the Muslim world, it is a shame for them. Where India and the United States have come close enough, Saudi Arabia has joined the anti-Pakistan movement and the situation has taken a different turn.
During the first Indo-Pakistani war in 1947, Pakistan occupied an area of 6,114 km, including the northern part of Jammu and Kashmir. This northern region is actually Gilgit-Baltistan, which is an integral part of India. Nevertheless, on November 1, the region of about two million people was declared the fifth province of Pakistan by Prime Minister Imran Khan. In addition, the Pakistani government held elections in Gilgit-Baltistan on November 15, despite strong objections from India.
According to India, the government of Pakistan has no right to hold elections in the occupied territories. From the very beginning, the political character of Gilgit-Baltistan has been disoriented. After the separation of the region from the occupied Jammu and Kashmir on April 26, 1949, Pakistan first exercised direct central rule here. The 5,160-square-mile area was ceded to China on March 2, 1973, despite strong protests from 2 million locals.
The region was renamed the Federally Administered Northern Areas (FANA) under then-Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. In 2009, the Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment and Self-Governance Order was issued giving Pakistan the right to self-government in this 'northern region'. But the locals demanded that an executive government be formed there in accordance with an international consensus. Since September 2009, the situation in the region has changed dramatically as Pakistan has signed an agreement with China for infrastructure and hydropower projects. The agreement allows China to invest in the region and bring in heavy machinery. In this case, the protest came from the local people.
Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan said in a speech in Gilgit that his government had decided to give Gilgit-Baltistan the status of a province. A statement from the Indian Ministry of External Affairs strongly condemned the illegal activities in the region. Calling on Pakistan to withdraw its occupation of the region, saying that such a move by Pakistan is in fact an attempt to cover up their illegal activities and does not cover up the seven-decade history of human rights deprivation, exploitation and deprivation of local people in Gilgit-Baltistan.
