'UK has historic obligation to resolve Kashmir dispute'

UK member of the Parliament Ivan Lewis has urged the British government to mediate between Pakistan and India on the Kashmir dispute by terming it as "a historic obligation" for the country.

Tensions have been simmering between India and Pakistan after New Delhi revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir last week.

In a letter addressed to UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, Lewis said that "the region of Kashmir has been the epicentre of violence and territorial conflict for more than 70 years", Radio Pakistan reported on Tuesday.

"As our newly-appointed Foreign Secretary, you will, of course, understand that the British government has a historic obligation to help to mediate between Pakistan and India.

"You will be aware that first tension arose in Kashmir after the British colonial administration departed from the subcontinent, leaving the Kashmiri people within the jurisdiction of the new nation of India," Lewis stated.

Therefore, he urged Raab to "condemn the action of the Indian government in its strongest terms", the report said.

He said it was "our moral obligation to speak out and in the first instance demand a peaceful resolution to the escalating situation in Kashmir".