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UAE envoy to India backs scrapping of Article 370
The United Arab Emirates' Ambassador to India, Abdulnasser Alshaali, has welcomed the Indian government's 2019 decision to revoke Article 370 that granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir. In an interview, he said the move has opened the region for development and investment, and that the UAE is keen to participate. The ambassador added that the decision was an internal matter for India and has not affected bilateral ties.
The remarks come as the UAE and India deepen economic cooperation, with the UAE being among India's top trading partners. Alshaali said Abu Dhabi sees potential in sectors like tourism and infrastructure in Kashmir. The Indian government has consistently defended the 5 August 2019 decision as necessary for integrating the region, while opposition parties and some international observers have criticised the subsequent security clampdown and restrictions on political activity.
No official reaction has yet been issued by the Jammu and Kashmir administration or by Pakistan, which also claims the territory.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Article 370 granted Jammu and Kashmir a unique autonomy within India, covering matters like citizenship and property ownership that other states did not have. Its revocation on 5 August 2019, by a presidential order, was the first time a state's special constitutional status was stripped without its own legislature's consent. The move also bifurcated the state into two union territories, Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir, directly under central rule. For the UAE, a major investor in India and a Gulf state with significant Kashmiri diaspora workers, the decision carries diplomatic and economic weight. The future three-way talks on the region's political status, between India, Pakistan and local representatives, remain stalled, with no date set for the next round.
Source: gulfnews.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Methodology and corrections.
