UK Reaffirms Stance on Kashmir During Parliamentary Debate
12 Dec 2025 11:54 PM IST12 Dec 2025 11:54 PM IST
UK Urges Diplomacy, Cites Human Rights as Parliament Revisits Kashmir Issue
UK Parliament
London: The UK government reaffirmed its long-standing policy on Kashmir as an issue for India and Pakistan to resolve based on the wishes of Kashmiris during a Westminster Hall debate in the Houses of Parliament this week. Hamish Falconer, minister in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), presented the official stance during the debate entitled Kashmir: Self-determination' secured by backbench Labour MP of Pakistani heritage Imran Hussain.
The MP for Bradford East, a constituency with a significant British Pakistani electorate, asked the minister to address a key question on whether Kashmir is a bilateral or an international issue.
I reaffirm the UK government's long-standing position on Kashmir, which is that it is for India and Pakistan to find a lasting resolution to the situation, taking into account the wishes of the Kashmiri people," said Falconer.
That principle is central to our approach, and it reflects our belief in diplomacy and our respect for human rights," he said.
The minister, in charge of the Middle East, Pakistan and Afghanistan in the FCDO, took note that Wednesday's backbench debate marked the fourth UK parliamentary intervention on Kashmir this year.
As the whole House knows, Kashmir is one of the most sensitive and enduring challenges in South Asia. It is a flashpoint between two nuclear-armed states and a place where history, identity and geopolitics collide.
The dispute has endured for nearly eight decades, and it defines the security landscape of South Asia. As we have seen this year, the stakes are incredibly high, and miscalculation or escalation could have consequences far beyond South Asia. That is why Britain, while maintaining a neutral stance, urges dialogue and respect for human rights," he said.
Labour MP Barry Gardiner highlighted the cross-border terrorism in the region and that most of the terrorist camps" are based in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Therefore, one of the things that his government could do is press the Government of Pakistan to close those terrorist camps. We know where they are: the South Asia Terrorism Portal records 42 identified terrorist training camps located in Pakistan, and 21 located in (Pakistan-occupied) Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan," said the MP for Brent West in London.
Falconer responded by noting that it is clearly a blight on South Asia that so many countries in the region believe their neighbours are hosting terrorists who threaten them.
The UK seeks to help on this issue. It is vital, and it has clearly been a cause of the most recent breakdown in relations," he stated.
Former prime minister Jeremy Corbyn was among the Labour MPs demanding United Nations (UN) intervention on the issue of Kashmiri self-determination during the debate.
There is strong disagreement between India and Pakistan about whether this issue should return to the United Nations... at different times India and Pakistan have respectively thought UN involvement was helpful or not helpful, the minister responded, reiterating the British government's call for an India-Pakistan bilateral dialogue.
( Source : Deccan Chronicle )
Next Story