India holds the key G20 tourism summit in Kashmir amid high security
India is hosting a critical G20 tourism summit in Kashmir amid strengthened security and opposition from China.
The working group conference is being hosted in Srinagar, the summer capital of the federally administrated region, from Monday to Wednesday.
India to host the G20 tourism meeting Kashmir:
This is the biggest global event scheduled in the region since India dumped its special status in 2019.
Over 60 representatives from G20 member nations are expected to be at the event.
China has said it will not be there, mentioning its firm resistance “to hosting any G20 summits in the disputed region”. The BBC has messaged India’s foreign ministry for its answer to China’s statement.
Both India and Pakistan argue Kashmir in total but control only areas of it. The nuclear-armed neighbours have already battled two wars and a limited battle over the province.
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In April, Pakistan, not a G20 member, criticised India’s decision to host the summits in Kashmir, naming it an “irresponsible” move.
Nevertheless, India said it was “natural” to have G20 events and summits in “Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, which are an essential and sacred part” of the nation.
In 2019, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led national government split the Muslim-majority area of Jammu and Kashmir to make two federally administrated regions – Jammu, Kashmir, and Ladakh. Ladakh is an argued frontier area along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) between India and China, and both nations claim territories.
The Indian government and some press sections have called the G20 meeting in Kashmir “historic”, billing it as a chance to showcase the province’s culture.
During the summit, India had conducted several security exercises. The province has seen an armed rebellion against India since 1989 – India blames Pakistan for inciting the stir by supporting separatist militants, a charge refuted by Islamabad.
