Erdogan again raises Kashmir issue at UNGA, calls for dialogue under UN Charter

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday (Sept 22) again raised the Jammu and Kashmir issue in his address to the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly, calling for dialogue to resolve disputes.

“In South Asia, it is important that all disputes, including the Kashmir issue, be addressed through dialogue within the framework of the United Nations Charter and of relevant resolutions,” Erdogan said during his address.

However, New Delhi maintains that the entire Jammu and Kashmir, including Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), is part of India and that the issue is bilateral. India has also maintained that no third party has any locus standi in the matter and has repeatedly called on Islamabad to end its illegal occupation of the territory.

This is not the first time Erdogan has used the UN General Assembly to comment on Kashmir. He had also raised the issue in 2019 after India revoked the special status provided to Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370.

In February 2025, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had also raised the Kashmir issue during his visit to Pakistan.

Speaking to the media in Islamabad on February 13, 2025, Erdogan said India and Pakistan should resolve the issue through dialogue.

“The Kashmir issue should be addressed according to the UN resolution through dialogue and keeping in mind the aspirations of the people of Kashmir. Our state and our nation, as in the past, stand in solidarity with our Kashmiri brothers today,” he had said.

India later rejected Erdogan’s remarks and protested with the Turkish envoy, calling his comments on Kashmir unwarranted and unacceptable.

“We reject such objectionable comments on matters which are internal to India. We have lodged a strong protest with the Turkish ambassador in Delhi. Such unwarranted statements on India’s territorial integrity and sovereignty are unacceptable. Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India. No other country has any locus standi to comment on it," Jaiswal had said.

Erdogan hails Mecca agreement

Turkey, which is part of the so-called Mecca defence agreement, recently signed a military agreement with Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. However, Ankara has not deployed any security resources amid the ongoing hostilities between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

Also Read: ‘Strike a deal or drive Iran into hell’: Trump issues fresh warning to Tehran at UNGA

Defending the Mecca defence agreement, Erdogan said the pact was aimed at strengthening regional cooperation and finding solutions to problems within the region.

“We are strengthening solidarity among us & aiming to generate solutions to the problems in our region, from within the region”

Erdogan also spoke about the ongoing situation in the Black Sea, saying attacks on commercial vessels cannot be accepted regardless of who carries them out.

“The recent attacks on commercial vessels in the Black Sea are unacceptable, regardless of who is responsible for them,” he told the United Nations General Assembly.

He said the issue should be viewed in the context of the impact such attacks can have on commercial shipping in the region.

Turning to the situation in Gaza, Erdogan called for the reconstruction of the devastated territory to begin immediately.

“We must begin the reconstruction of Gaza immediately,” he told the United Nations General Assembly, while urging world leaders to “exert greater pressure on Israel”.