By Robeka Irfan | SCN NEWS
UNITED NATION— Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan raised the Kashmir dispute during his address to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, calling for dialogue to resolve disputes in South Asia and placing the issue within the framework of the UN Charter and relevant resolutions.
“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,” Erdoğan told the 81st session of the General Assembly in New York.
The remarks were delivered during the opening day of the UNGA81 General Debate, which runs from Sept. 22 through Sept. 28 and brings heads of state, heads of government and other senior representatives to UN headquarters.
Erdoğan's intervention continued Türkiye's practice of raising Kashmir at the General Assembly, but his formulation on Tuesday focused on dialogue and the UN framework rather than proposing a specific Turkish mediation initiative. He has referred to Kashmir in several previous UNGA addresses and has also discussed the dispute during bilateral engagement with Pakistan.
The Turkish president's remarks came with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif present at UN headquarters, adding significance for Pakistan as Islamabad seeks to keep Kashmir on the international diplomatic agenda during high-level week.
Pakistan maintains that Jammu and Kashmir is an internationally recognised dispute and has repeatedly called for its resolution in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions and the wishes of the Kashmiri people. India disputes that framing, considers Jammu and Kashmir an integral part of the country and maintains that outstanding issues with Pakistan should be handled bilaterally.
New Delhi has also rejected third-party involvement in the dispute. Following earlier comments by Erdoğan on Kashmir, India's Ministry of External Affairs said there was no need for outside mediation on bilateral issues between India and Pakistan.
Erdoğan's latest reference comes against the backdrop of renewed international attention on India-Pakistan tensions following their military confrontation in 2025. U.S. President Donald Trump also referred to the India-Pakistan crisis during his own UNGA81 address on Tuesday, repeating his claim that he helped stop the fighting and citing comments by Sharif crediting him with helping prevent a larger conflict. India has previously disputed Trump's characterisation of Washington's role in bringing about the ceasefire.
The convergence of those references puts South Asia back into the diplomatic conversation during the opening day of UNGA81, although Washington and Ankara are approaching it differently. Trump has focused on his claimed role in stopping the 2025 confrontation, while Erdoğan explicitly connected Kashmir with dialogue under the UN Charter and relevant resolutions.
Kashmir was only one part of Erdoğan's wider General Assembly address. He also called for reform of the UN Security Council, saying a system in which five permanent members wield veto power no longer adequately represents more than 190 UN member states. Erdoğan argued that the organisation had become increasingly unable to fulfil its responsibility to maintain international peace.
He also devoted substantial attention to Gaza, urged countries that have not recognised Palestine to reconsider their position and called for greater international pressure on Israel. Türkiye has been one of Israel's strongest critics over the Gaza war; Israel rejects allegations that its military campaign amounts to genocide.
For Pakistan, however, Erdoğan's explicit reference to Kashmir provides a separate diplomatic development from the broader Türkiye speech. Rather than leaving the dispute inside a general discussion of South Asia, the Turkish president placed Kashmir by name before the General Assembly and linked its resolution to dialogue, the UN Charter and relevant resolutions.
SCN AUDIO: https://pub-0b1978e764294ca4ac092c8ede52e160.r2.dev/audio/SCN-Audio-Report-Test.mp3 | New York