Turkish foreign minister takes part in meeting of Organization of Islamic Cooperation

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan attended a meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Contact Group on European Muslims in New York City on Wednesday on the sidelines of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly.

Fidan earlier held sessions with his counterparts from Azerbaijan, Greece, the Netherlands, Egypt, Switzerland and Germany.

Turkey’s Deputy Foreign Minister Ambassador Ahmet Yildiz meanwhile participated in a meeting of the OIC Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir on the sidelines of the General Assembly, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

During the meeting, Yildiz said that a “fair and permanent solution” to the Kashmir problem can only be attained via dialogue and collaboration between Pakistan and India.???????

Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan region, is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full. A small sliver of Kashmir is also held by China.

Since they were partitioned in 1947, the two South Asian countries have fought three wars – in 1948, 1965 and 1971. Two of them were over Kashmir.

In the Siachen Glacier region in northern Kashmir, Indian and Pakistani troops have fought intermittently since 1984. A cease-fire came into effect in 2003.

Some Kashmiri groups in Jammu and Kashmir have been fighting against Indian rule for independence or for unification with neighboring Pakistan.

Thousands of people have been killed in the conflict in the region since 1989, according to human rights groups.???????