J&K an ‘important part’ of India, US will reconsider travel advisories: Envoy Gor

Srinagar, Aug 19 (IANS) US Ambassador to India, Sergio Gor, who arrived in Srinagar on Wednesday on his maiden visit to Jammu and Kashmir, said that the United States will reconsider advisories on travel to the Union Territory, adding that that Jammu and Kashmir is an important part of India.

After meeting Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, the US Envoy said: “It’s a pleasure to be here. US will reconsider its advisories on travel to Jammu and Kashmir. This is an important part of India.”

“I am here, visiting for the first time. It is an incredibly beautiful place. I am thrilled to be here, thrilled to see this place. We just had a very good meeting. We have some follow-ups, so we hope to take them back to Washington, back to Delhi.”

“But a very warm, a very cordial welcome, and we look forward to building this relationship forward.”

Gor arrived in Srinagar earlier on Wednesday on his two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.

Chief Minister Abdullah said earlier on Wednesday that he would discuss the situation in the region with the US envoy, but ruled out raising internal issues with Washington’s representative, saying only the Central government can resolve those issues.

After meeting the US Ambassador, CM Abdullah said, “It was a very good meeting. We had an opportunity to discuss the relations between our two countries but with specific focus on what the US can do with J&K.”

“There are obviously certain legacy issues that over time we will be working to resolve, but we look forward to taking this conversation further.”

“This is a conversation that will take place both between Ambassador Gor and Washington, and between me and the Indian government in New Delhi. But we are very hopeful and optimistic that the engagement between the US and Jammu and Kashmir will both widen and deepen in the years ahead,” the Chief Minister added.

Gor is the first US Ambassador to visit Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.

Gor’s assertion that Jammu and Kashmir is an important part of India is of significance for local politics, especially for separatists, who had been trying to attract international attention during the peak years of terror violence here.

–IANS

sq/khz/vd