Talking about Kashmir at UNGA is Pakistan's annual itch: India

As India and Pakistan get ready to make the country statements at the United Nations general assembly, India has sent a stern message to Islamabad on Kashmir.

Calling Pakistan's reference to Kashmir at UNGA an "annual itch" for Pakistan, India's permanent representative to UN Syed Akbaruddin while speaking to WION said, "India is part of the mainstream of global community, if someone else wants to fritter away the time and have an annual itch, it is their choice."

He said UNGA is a global forum is that it provides "everybody an opportunity" and that opportunity "can either be used to broaden friendships, strengthen collaborations or to follow tracks that have no resonance.. each country has to do something that finds resonance. "

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The sentiment was echoed by the head of the UN division in MEA Dinesh Patnaik who said India has been handling Pakistan raising Kashmir every year and "this is not the first time this is happening". He said Pakistan wants to "act solo and is not multilateralist. They want to bring issues that are not part of multilateral agenda. This is not the first time they do this. Whenever they have done it in past we have tackled it. This is nothing new"

India will strongly raise the issue of terrorism and call for an early resolution on a comprehensive convention on international terrorism or CCIT. Syed Akbaruddin while answering WION's question on terror said,' terrorism by its definition is a threat to the nation-state. Theoretically, these are state actors that threaten civil society. All in the comity of nation tackle it collectively. Its a growing and perennial threat."

India has been calling for a common definition of terror through the comprehensive convention on international terrorism. The treaty which India had proposed way back in 1996 calls for criminalizing all forms of terrorism and terror safe havens. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had pitched for it during his address at the 69th session of the UNGA in September of 2014.

India will focus on many things from climate change to peacekeeping. On Climate change, Akbaruddin said, "India has a good story to tell". He also talked about the "challenges and stresses" multilateralism is facing" India is multilateralist by orientation and tradition"

India is being represented by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj at the 73rd session of UNGA. She will be having over 30 bilateral meetings with her counterparts from different nations and take in meets such as SAARC FMs meeting, IBSA Meeting, NAM meets on Palestine, G4 meet on the reformation of UNSC on the sidelines of UNGA. The external affairs minister will end her week-long visit to new york by making the country statement for India on 29th September which according to India's permanent representative will "give a broad picture of what India is doing and how India supports multilateralism".