China requests closed UNSC meeting on Kashmir

China has requested a closed meeting of the UN Security Council to address the situation in Jammu and Kashmir, a diplomatic source said on Wednesday, Trend reports citing Sputnik.

"The permanent mission of China to the UN had requested a closed meeting citing the letter sent by Pakistan," the source said.

On Tuesday, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, in a letter addressed to Security Council President Joanna Wronecka, requested to convene consultations on Jammu and Kashmir, citing a number of human rights violations allegedly committed by Indian authorities before and after the decision to revoke the special status of the state and threats to international peace and security that this action might pose.

Last week, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that Beijing was very concerned regarding the situation surrounding Kashmir, stressing that the issue should be resolved by peaceful means and in accordance with the UN Charter, the Security Council’s resolutions and bilateral agreements.

In a separate statement, Yi said that India had changed the status quo in the Kashmir region by amending the Indian Constitution.

"By introducing changes to the constitution, the Indian side has changed the status quo in Kashmir, which has resulted in tensions in the region. The Chinese side is against any unilateral actions that lead to the aggravation of the situation," Wang said at a meeting with his Indian counterpart, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.

On 5 August, Indian President Ram Nath Kovind signed a decree removing the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, which was granted to the state by Article 370 of the Indian constitution. Under the new initiative by the federal government, the region will be divided into two union territories.