On Monday, Pakistan’s Foreign Office firmly rejected India’s assertions regarding the status of the contested region of Jammu and Kashmir. The spokesperson emphasized that New Delhi’s “unilateral claims of sovereignty have no impact on the internationally recognized disputed status of the area.” This response follows a recent United Nations resolution supported by numerous African nations, which aimed to enhance the geographical representation of continents, inadvertently leading to a reduction in the size of North America and Europe.
India was one of the 164 nations that endorsed this resolution. However, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs clarified on Sunday that the resolution should not be interpreted as an endorsement of any particular map or boundary representation. They insisted that their territory, including Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, should be illustrated according to India’s official map, characterizing any discrepancy as “unacceptable.”
Pakistan’s Response to India’s Claims
Sajjad Haider Khan, the spokesperson for the Foreign Office, stated, “Pakistan categorically rejects India’s baseless assertions regarding the status of Jammu and Kashmir which are contrary to internationally recognized facts.” He reiterated that India’s ongoing illegal occupation and unilateral decisions cannot modify the internationally acknowledged disputed status of the region.
Khan also highlighted that the Kashmir conflict is one of the longest-standing unresolved disputes on the agenda of the United Nations Security Council. He pointed out that relevant UN resolutions dictate that the final resolution of the matter must align with Security Council directives and the aspirations of the Kashmiri people, which should be expressed through a fair and impartial plebiscite supervised by the UN.
The UN’s Cartographic Representation
Khan further noted that the official UN maps, which classify Jammu and Kashmir as a disputed territory, are the only legitimate cartographic representations of its legal status. He stated, “India’s so-called official maps and unilateral claims of sovereignty have no bearing on the status of the disputed territory.”
The spokesperson urged the global community to compel India to cease its human rights violations in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir and to honor its obligations towards the self-determination rights of the Kashmiri people, as outlined in relevant UN Security Council resolutions.
In relation to the aforementioned resolution, it introduced the Equal Earth cartographic projection, which aims to enhance the accuracy of global cartographic representations. The resolution encouraged countries to adopt this new map instead of the traditional Mercator projection, which has been in use since it was developed by Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator in 1569. The United States criticized the resolution, arguing that such actions undermine the institution’s credibility.
