US Ambassador Sergio Gor calls Jammu and Kashmir 'important part of India’

US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor on Wednesday (August 19) described Jammu and Kashmir as part of India during his first visit to the Union Territory, where he met Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.

Jammu and Kashmir is an important part of India and an incredibly beautiful place, the US envoy said at a joint media briefing with Abdullah

Gor, who serves as US President Donald Trump’s Special Envoy for South and Central Asia, said the meeting with Abdullah was cordial.

Gor signals possible travel advisory review

Gor spoke about the security situation in the Valley and the possibility of reviewing the US travel advisory. He said he could not make any "big announcement" as of now.

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"The United States puts out travel warnings and every so often, we re-evaluate those travel warnings. I cannot make any big announcements here today, but it is something we are going to look at.

"New Delhi, the chief minister here, the government here, we believe have made some incredible steps to keeping this area safer and making it more safe," Gor said at a joint media briefing with Abdullah.

The visit is Gor’s first to Kashmir after Operation Sindoor and the Galwan Valley clashes between Indian and Chinese forces in eastern Ladakh in 2020.

What J&K CM said

Abdullah said he discussed with Gor the relations between New Delhi and Washington with a specific focus on Jammu and Kashmir.

"It was a very good meeting. We had an opportunity to discuss the relations between our two countries, but with a specific focus on what the US can do with Jammu and Kashmir," the chief minister said.

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"There are obviously certain legacy issues that over time we will be working to resolve. But we look forward to taking this conversation further. This is a conversation that will take place both between Ambassador Gor and Washington, and between me and the Government of India in New Delhi," he said.

Abdullah said he is very hopeful and optimistic that the engagement between the United States and Jammu and Kashmir will "both widen and deepen in the years ahead".

(With agency inputs)