LAHORE - Britain desires earliest resolution of Kashmir issue as per aspirations of the people of Kashmir, says British parliamentarian Rahman Chishti.

The representative of the 7-member delegation of the UK legislators was talking to the media after an hour-long meeting with National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, JI leader Liaqat Baloch, PML-N MNA Pervez Malik and former Punjab governor Khwaja Ahmad Tariq Rahim here on Monday.

Chishti, a UK national born in Muzaffarabad, AJK, said after segregating itself from the European Union, the UK is strengthening ties with the world outside and it gives huge preference to cementing trade, cultural, security and combat terrorism relations with Pakistan and help it resolve Kashmir dispute with India.

“Resolution of Kashmir issue is a priority of the UK as it believes it must for peace in the region,” the MP said while inviting attention of the world to Kashmir problem, which has so far caused four full scale and small scale wars between the two atomic powers of the region since 1947 partition.

Rahman Chisti also mentioned about visit of British Prime Minister Theresa May and the foreign minister to Pakistan in near future to get closer to Islamabad.

The meeting held at the Speaker’s residence, in response to the visit Sardar Ayaz Sadiq had in 2015 to the United Kingdom for the purpose of highlighting Kashmir issue at the international level and mobilise the world to its solution.

The group of British parliamentarians in 2016 had debated various matters relating to bilateral relations between Pakistan and UK, wherein special place was given to solution of Kashmir issue which Pakistan wants to be resolved according to the UN resolutions. This means holding plebiscite to let Kashmiris decide which country, Pakistan or India, they want to join.

The British delegation is due to visit Islamabad and Muzaffarabad where it will meet top leaders of both Pakistan and AJK in addition to interacting with Kashmiri people. It will also be shown the situation at the Line of Control where Indian troops are continuing to commit border violations by heavy and light shelling day in day out.

Ayaz Sadiq, sharing some salient features of the meeting with the media, said Pakistan also wants the UK Parliamentarians to visit the Occupied Kashmir to get firsthand knowledge as to the worst kind of violations of the human rights by the Indian forces in that part and also what Kashmiris actually demanded.

Earlier, the UK delegation also held meeting with Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Rahman Chisti told the media that they have figured the Kashmir issue in 13 questions prepared by the British Foreign Office that will shape due course its solution.

The UK team will also visit Kashmir to know problems of the people, Chisti said while underscoring the need for dialogue between India and Pakistan to sort out Kashmir issue as per aspirations of Kashmiri people as laid down in the UN resolutions.

The UK parliamentarians group is also going to hold next round of debate on Kashmir and other matters in near future. Chishti said the UK wants resolution of Kashmir issue as early as possible as peace in the region largely links to it.